What The Future Holds
by ChimamireNoBara22
Summary: Minoko has a skill that most would think to be useful in life. She can see glimpses of the future in waking dreams which leads to her befriending a young boy named Gaara. However, what happens when the Kazekage finds out about their friendship? Will Minoko overcome the fate that has befallen her? Or will her dreams become her reality?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 1**

"Mommy, fire's pretty isn't it," asked four year old Minoko.

Mizuno smiled down at her daughter, "Yes, sweetie, fire is very pretty."

The little girl nodded enthusiastically then scrunched up her face in confusion, "Then why would people be screaming if they see it?" she asked in her innocent voice.

"Well," Mizuno said as she sat down at the edge of her daughter's bed, "If fire touches you, it would hurt a lot. So while it is pretty, it can also be dangerous."

"Oh! You mean like how dessert roses are pretty but they stick you if you try to take one?"

The mom smiled, "Yes, Minoko, just like the roses. Why are you asking about fire and screaming anyway? Did you hear someone talking about it?"

The girl shook her head earnestly, "Nope! My dream bubble had pictures in it with lots and lots of fire! It was red and orange and yellow and really pretty mommy! But people were screaming and it made the pretty thing scary."

Mizuno's face showed concern as she looked at her only child, "What do you mean your dream bubble? You haven't gone to sleep yet sweetheart."

"Sometimes I get a dream bubble when I'm awake," the little girl stated matter-of-factly, "And those are the best because they usually come true!"

The concern turned to fear as the mother processed the information, "Minoko, where was the fire? Who was screaming in your dream bubble?"

Minoko looked confused as she answered, "The whole village was on fire. All the houses and stuff was lit up, even the school! And everyone was screaming and running and then my dream bubble got scary, so I popped it!" she said with a proud smile.

Mizuno grabbed her daughter's shoulders gently but firmly, "Do you know when that was going to happen?"

Minoko looked at her mother with her big red eyes, worry evident in the ruby orbs, "Why mommy, what's wrong? It was only a dream bubble. Scary stuff like that can't happen in real life, can it?"

The mother shook her daughter a bit, "Never mind that! When did it happen Minoko?"

"Tonight," the girl said in a quiet voice, afraid to further upset her mother, "The pretty fire was going to happen tonight."

The panic escalated in Mizuno's face as she released her daughter, "Taru! Taru, we need to leave, now!"

Minoko's father rushed in, his black hair damp from his evening shower, "Mizuno, what's wrong, why are you screaming?"

Minoko's mother rushed through all the information she gathered as she frantically packed a bag for her daughter. After recounting everything, Taru looked just as frantic as Mizuno and rushed from the room to pack for the two adults.

"Mommy, what's going on?" came the frightened voice of the four year old, still sitting on her bed, clutching her stuffed bear for comfort.

The mom turned and her face softened a bit, trying to cover the panic, "Oh, sweetie, we need to leave tonight. Come on, get out of bed and get dressed. You can bring Sugar with you," she said, indicating the bear trapped in the grip of its owner.

The little girl nodded as she did as she was told. Soon, the family of three was packed and leaving the village just as the sun settled beyond the horizon. Minutes later, the father looked back as the first screams started and the light of the fires lit up the night as though the sun had never disappeared. He turned away from the sight and sped up to catch up with his wife and young daughter. They would go to the one place they could find safety and send help. Suna.

**…**

"Daddy, when can we go home?"

Taru looked up from his cup of coffee to look at the inquisitive eyes of his baby girl sitting across from him at the table, kicking her feet back and forth, "I'm sorry Minoko, but we can't go back. This is our home now."

The girl looked down at her lap, "Is it my fault?" she asked quietly, her lower lip starting to quiver.

He rose one eyebrow in surprise, "Why would you think that?"

"Because, we were all happy until I told mommy about my dream bubble. Now we're all sad and can't go home. If I didn't have my dream bubble, then we wouldn't have had to leave."

Taru got up and went to kneel next to his daughter, gently taking both her hands in one of his and tilting her chin up with his other to look in her ruby eyes, "I don't want you to ever think that this is your fault. If you hadn't told us about your dream, we would never be able to be happy again. We would be one of those screaming people you saw. Happiness doesn't come from where we live. You make your mother and me so proud and happy all by yourself," he moved his hand from her chin to wipe her tears that had leaked out, "And we love you very much."

He smiled warmly at her and he received a toothy grin back. Small arms found their way around his neck and he hugged his daughter to him.

"Now," he said, disentangling himself from her tiny arms, "why don't you go explore your new home village? I'm pretty sure I saw a park around the corner from this apartment complex. Maybe you can make some new friends."

Minoko nodded excitedly and hopped off her chair. When she got to the door she turned to wave bye to her dad, then left to explore the aforementioned park.

Taru sighed heavily and sat back at his place at the small table. After arriving in Suna two nights ago, they met with the Kazekage and told him about the raid on their village which was a day's journey from Suna. They excluded the details of how they escaped, not wanting to bring unwanted attention to their young daughter. The Kazekage never questioned them about the details and sent them to a nearby complex that was used to housing travelers at all hours of the night. The following day, some local shinobi had come by with news that the team sent to their village had returned. There was nothing left of their hometown except the skeletons of houses and villagers in the middle of the dessert.

Taru ran a hand through his shaggy black hair when he felt his wife hug him from behind. He looked over his shoulder to see her beautiful burgundy eyes staring back at him.

"It'll be ok," she said, "We're safe now."

He nodded, "And hopefully we will continue to be that way. I'm just worried for Minoko. Danger seems to follow the gifted in our world. And if our assumption is correct, she'll be the one it looks for."

**A/N: Hello my lovely readers! I hope that you like my intro for my newest fanfic. I've been meaning to write this for years and I finally have too much time on my hands :D Please review and tell me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 2**

Minoko wandered through the streets of her new home, eyes wide in wonder. It was similar to her old village. Same colors, same sandy structures, similar smells coming from venders. But it was different. It was so BIG! There were houses that were taller here, more than one floor apiece. Minoko had never seen anything so huge.

She had been walking only a few minutes after leaving her apartment when the road tapered off into a sandy playground. Minoko stood on top of a slight hill overlooking it as she took in everything. There were swings and slides and a large open area where a group of children were playing with a ball.

She was about to go ask if she could play when she heard the slow squeaking of chains. Looking slightly to the right she saw a little boy her age on the swing set. He held onto the chains with both hands and quietly pushed himself back and forth ever so slightly. He was looking at the kids with a blank expression. Seeming to sense her eyes on him, the red-head tore his gaze from the laughing group and looked at her. Seafoam met crimson as Minoko was momentarily swept away into a dream bubble. It was shorter than usual. Just her and the redhead walking side by side. She was laughing while he tried to glare at her, a small smile tugging at his lips before he gave up and chuckled.

She came back to reality when a shout of frustration came from the group of kids. The boy's eyes snapped over and she followed his gaze. Apparently, the ball had gotten stuck on a ledge. The boy on the swings got up and hesitantly started walking toward the group. As Minoko watched, her breath caught briefly. Somehow, there was a small amount of sand that seemed to come alive, gently encasing the ball and lowering it into the redhead's awaiting arms.

All of the other kids froze. There was no sound coming from the once rowdy group. The lone boy seemed to take a breath before smiling shyly and holding out the ball. That seemed to snap everyone out of their daze. One kid screamed and called the boy a monster. That made Minoko angry.

"Hey!" she yelled as she ran/slid down the sandy embankment. All eyes fell one her as she stomped up to the group, as much rage as a normal four-year-old could have shining in her eyes.

"He tried to do something nice for you by getting your ball down and you call him a monster!? You're nothing but a mean bully! You don't deserve your ball back!" she said, putting her hands on her hips like she had seen her mommy doing when she got angry at someone.

One of the older kids looked at her like she was crazy, "What are you talking about? Don't you know who that is?" he asked pointing shakily to the redhead.

She blinked for s a second as she looked over her shoulder at the boy. His eyes were a bit wide as he looked back at her.

"Hey, what's your name?"

He blinked a couple times before quietly answering "Gaara."

She nodded and turned back to the group, "He's Gaara and he's going to be my best friend!" she declared with a triumphant smile.

The older boy in front of her stared in disbelief before he blinked and looked at the others in the group. No one seemed to know how to react to her proclamation.

"What's going on over here?" asked a voice from behind them. Minoko looked up and saw a man with shoulder length blond hair approaching. The older boy looked at the group of kids again and said "Let's just go home." The others nodded quickly and scampered away. Minoko huffed in their general direction and sticking her tongue out at them. Sniffing in satisfaction she turned around to see the man look at her in amusement and Gaara looking back and forth between her and the retreating backs of the other kids.

The man glanced at her self-proclaimed best friend, "Are you ok Gaara?"

The young boy blinked and looked at the man, "Uncle. I…" his little nose scrunched up in confusion as he glanced at her quickly, "I think…I made a friend."

Minoko smiled widely and hopped in place, "Yep! We're going to be best friends! I'm Minoko. I'm four years old!"

Gaara just nodded, his eyes wide and a small smile starting to tug at the corners of his mouth. The older man looked at her curiously and said, "I'm Yashamaru. I'm Gaara's uncle on his mother's side. It's nice to meet you Minoko-chan."

"You really meant it?" Gaara whispered, "You really want to be my friend?"

"Yep!" Minoko said with a grin, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Cause…" Gaara looked sown as his voice got softer, "cause I'm a monster."

Minoko frowned, "No you're not."

Gaara glanced up at her nervously and slowly pointed down. Minoko looked where he was pointing and saw a tendril of sand rise. It formed a hand that waved at her. Minoko's eyes widened as she crouched down to get a better look, not noticing the uncle tensing as she did so. It _really_ looked like a real hand! She looked up at Gaara, "That's so cool! Are you the one doing that?"

He slowly nodded and jumped a little when she seemed to practically teleport in front of him. The smile on her face couldn't have been more excited or more genuine, "I bet you can make _awesome_ sand castles!"

She looked over at Yashamaru who seemed to be generally conflicted. The look on his face was weird, like he was angry or scared or had to poop or something. Yeah, he probably had to poop. She sometimes got that look when that happened. She smiled up at him, "Can Gaara and I play for a while? Pleeeease? I don't have to go home for…" she glanced up at the sky to find the sun, "…for a couple hours still."

When Gaara looked away from her to see what his uncle would say, Yashamaru's look slowly softened, "I don't see why not. Just be careful. I'll come by when it starts to get dark to walk you both home."

Minoko squealed in delight and grabbed Gaara's hand. He was so surprised that the sand didn't do anything that he let her drag him away. Slowly, a real smile spread across his face. He made a friend.

**…**

Yashamaru watched the children go and kept an eye on them for a few minutes before he turned to leave. He needed to report this. That little girl could be the key to controlling Gaara. He just didn't know if the Kazekage would see that as a good thing or not. He hoped that nothing bad would come of it. The girl, Minoko, seemed like a sweet little thing. He'd hate for something to happen to her. And Gaara seemed happy for the first time he could really remember.

He sighed. Well, there was nothing he could do about it. He was a shinobi. He would simply do as his leader ordered. No matter the cost.

**A/N: And Gaara and Yashamaru come into play while Minoko saves the day! (Yes, that rhymed. Yes, it was cheesy. No, I will not take it back ^_^).**

**I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please leave a review!**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 3**

After that first meeting, Minoko and Gaara met every day to play, and everyday Gaara seemed surprised to see her waiting for him by the swings. Minoko would smile and wave so enthusiastically that he wondered how she didn't fall over. He would give a shy smile as he walked over, then she would take his hand and pull him in a random direction to start the day's adventures.

The first time that they took turns pushing each other on the swings, he had been nervous. He knew that his sand never really let anyone touch him before and he didn't want to hurt his new friend. He slowly got on when it was his turn and took hold of the chains, his body tensed and eyes closed tightly.

Minoko didn't really notice any of that , thinking he was just shy, and smiled at his back, "Ready?" she asked.

He hesitated, then nodded slowly. Minoko placed her hands on his back and slowly started to push him. Gaara's eyes snapped open when he felt her hands on his back. The sand didn't react! As he slowly started to go higher and higher he chanced a glance behind him. Minoko had her eyebrows scrunched in concentration, focusing intently on timing each push.

Gaara couldn't help it; he let out a soft, disbelieving laugh. His eyes closed in pure happiness and his features softened drastically. He finally looked like the four year old that he was. One without the burden that he carried in his everyday life.

Minoko stared at him in awe. She had never seen anyone that pretty in her whole life! She decided then that she was going to do anything that she could to make him laugh again and again and again for the rest of her life!

They played until the sun started to set each day. Minoko needed to be home before the sun sank below the outer walls of Suna and Gaara would always insist on walking her home. Yashamaru-oji-san said that that was what you were supposed to do for a girl.

Each night, when they reached her front door, Minoko would say goodbye in the same way. She knew that Gaara wasn't sure how to hug people or say goodbye, so she said that she would make sure he did it right. She would stand directly in front of him, take his hands and place them around her waist, and throw her arms around his neck. She would then say "You're my best friend, I love you bunches and bunches, and we'll be together forever!"

The first time that she did that, he had frozen and turned bright red. She had giggled and went inside while he remained frozen in place for a few more minutes. After repeating the same ritual every night for the last three weeks, he was finally starting to get used to it. If he was honest with himself, he was starting to look forward to it. Minoko was the only person that had ever hugged him. Even Yashamaru-oji-san had never done that. The most that he did was place a hand on Gaara's head. It was comforting, but not as much as Minoko's hug.

**…**

Gaara found Minoko sitting on the swings in the afternoon about three weeks after they started playing with each other. They had to meet up later in the day because he had a meeting with his father that morning. Gaara's features hardened slightly at the thought of that man. He really didn't like him. Not only was he cold, but he didn't even seem to look at Gaara as a person. The man even told his siblings to stay away from him. The meeting had been about Minoko. He said that Gaara needed to be careful, because if she got hurt, it would be his fault.

Gaara looked across the park at her as he walked over and a small smile broke through. She was staring into space like she sometimes did while they were together. He didn't know why she did that, but she never responded to him while she was like this. He didn't question it too much though. After all, he sometimes missed what people said on the outside whenever Mother spoke too loud on the inside. Maybe something similar was happening to her?

He waited patiently on the swing next to her and watched her as her facial expressions changed. Her eyes were almost the same color as his hair, maybe one or two shades darker. When she got like this though, something about her eyes seemed to…shift…in some way. He couldn't really explain it.

He looked at her long, waist-length, wavy black hair piled on top of her head in a messy ball. He thought it was called a bread…or was it a roll? …something that he could eat.

"I should have eaten lunch when Yashamaru-oji-san asked," he whispered to himself a bit self-consciously. He had already been running late because of the meeting lasting longer than he thought it would and he didn't want Minoko to leave.

She was his first friend. The first person other than his uncle that seemed to actually care about him. Everyone else ran away when they saw him or just glared. He was almost waiting for the day when Minoko realized that everyone else was right and would leave him too. He knew that she was kind, but he had never had someone that stayed this long. Even his brother and sister were scared of him. The moment she found out about Mother, she would probably be scared too.

He was drawn out of his miserable thoughts when Minoko blinked rapidly. Her nose scrunched up in a way that made her look really cute. Almost like a puppy that got its nose tapped for doing something naughty.

"That's still a really weird dance," she said to herself.

"Dance?" Gaara asked. Minoko jumped and almost fell of her swing when he spoke. Gaara giggled softly when she turned to playfully glare at him. He felt his chest get warm. Her glare never made him feel cold like the others.

"Don't _do _that!" she scolded.

Gaara tilted his head to the side slightly, looking innocently confused, "Don't do what?"

"Sneak up on me," she said with a small humpf. She righted herself on the swing and looked around her, "How long have you been sitting there anyway?"

Gaara shrugged and she sighed in response, trying to look at him sternly. He smiled at her when her lip started twitching upwards. Pretty soon both of them started laughing at how ridiculous the situation was.

Minoko wiped a tear from her eye and looked at her best friend, "So what do you want to do today? It's your turn to pick."

Gaara's face lit up and he started bouncing lightly in on his swing, "I want to show you one of my favorite places!" he said excitedly.

Minoko nodded and hopped off her swing, "Lead the way!" she said.

Gaara's stomach chose that moment to give a loud rumble. His face turned bright red as Minoko giggled, "Maybe we should get something to eat first. How about that one stand that sells salted gizzard? I know it's your favorite," she said with a kind smile.

Gaara bobbed his head as the blush started to recede and jumped down from the swing. He started to walk in the opposite direction of her apartment building and Minoko moved to walk alongside him. They started to talk and laugh about different things along the way. They were both always surprised when they realized that they could have real conversations. That had both been told that they were smarter than most kids their age, so it was nice that they could talk normally with each other.

They chatted about when they would go to school and what they wanted to be when they grew up. Minoko talked about the possibilities of being a baker, painter, or seamstress and the pros and cons of each profession. From skill level, to studies, to demand for each job in Suna and pay differences. Her daddy made sure she knew about this kind of stuff so she would be more responsible when she got older. Gaara nodded along to each possible career and assured her that she would do well in anything as long as she tried hard at it. When she asked him what he wanted to do he shrugged, "People in my family always become shinobi, so I'll probably have to be one too."

Minoko changed the subject when she noticed his slightly uncomfortable look and started jabbering about different ways to bake a cake and the flavors that she thought were best. They both continued talking, well, Minoko talked and Gaara mostly listened, as they arrived at the food stand and as they ate.

They finished quickly and threw away their trash. Gaara's face brightened when he remembered that they were going to his favorite place. He started walking, gesturing for Minoko to follow him.

Minoko soon noticed that wherever they went, there weren't any crowds. She looked around and saw people looking at Gaara with fear. Some sneered at him in a way that made her angry. She saw him notice the same thing when he started to get even quieter than usual. She reached out and took his hand as she walked a little quicker, sending the occasional glare back at the meanies.

Gaara looked down at their joined hands and a small, shy smile appeared on his face. He wasn't alone. He looked at the tiny girl in front of him and gently squeezed her hand in thanks. She glanced back at him and grinned. He knew then that he would make sure nothing happened to her. If she was with him, it didn't matter what anyone else did.

**…**

The two children ended up walking for about twenty minutes before Gaara started vibrating with barely contained excitement, "We're here!" he said as he let go of her hand and ran up to a glass building. He looked over his shoulder at her as he stretched up on tiptoe to open the door, "Come on!"

Minoko looked at the massive green-tinted glass building in confused curiosity. It was at least three stories high and longer than any building that she had seen before. After pausing a moment to take it in, she just shrugged and followed the red-head inside.

When she entered the building, she had to take a moment to remember how to breathe again. There were colors everywhere! And more green than she had seen in her whole life combined! She looked around in awe. There were trees that she had only seen in books surrounding her, some that went all the way up to the ceiling! Closer to the ground were flowers of every color and size. Some were in pots while others were planted in a slightly raised area of dirt near the trees.

She was so mesmerized that she almost forgot to look for her friend. She glanced down the different paths that lead away from the front door and saw a messy mop of red hair pop out from one corner, "Come on, this way!" he said. Minoko had never seen Gaara look so…lively…before. He was almost glowing in this place. She jogged a bit to catch up with him before he went around the corner. She didn't want to lose him. If she did, she would probably be lost in here forever!

"Wait for me! Why are you going so fast?" she asked when she caught up. She took a breath and looked around them, "This place is amazing! I can see why it's your favorite spot!"

Gaara looked confused for a moment, "This isn't my favorite spot," he said seriously, "it's further in the back in its own section of the greenhouse."

She gaped at him incredulously, "Somewhere _better_ than here!? Seriously?"

He nodded his head enthusiastically and started to walk quickly again. She walked with him through the winding paths of greenery. After a while they came to another door that Gaara opened eagerly. Minoko was brimming with so much anticipation and excitement that she rushed in after him…and stopped abruptly.

Cactuses…or was it cacti? ...were everywhere. Big, small, fat, thin, flowers, plain. Everywhere she looked, she saw a prickly, green blob that would stick you like a desert rose if touched…and she wilted. _This_ was what he was so excited about?

She looked over at the boy and saw that his whole body relaxed as he looked around. There was a sense of peace surrounding him that she had never really seen before. She sighed lightly and gave a small smile. Well, if he was happy…

"This place is pretty cool too. Are they all the same type?" she asked.

She didn't expect the offended look that crossed his face, nor did she expect it to look so adorable.

"The same?" he repeated in disbelief, "They're completely different!"

"Really?" the crimson eyed girl asked, doubt lacing her voice, "How so?"

What followed was something that she could not have prepared for. Gaara launched himself into an hours-long speech about the differences between the prickly death traps. Gaara's eyes lit up when he was explaining how each one was different and how to take care of them. Some needed more water and lived on the edges of the desert, some survived on a small amount of water each year. This one was edible after you cut off the thorns, but this one was poisonous and used on some shinobi's weapons. This one flowers once a year, these bloom all year, and that one over there never has a flower.

Her head was spinning from the information overload, but she liked seeing him happy so she just continued nodding along while he talked. She didn't think that he was even capable of talking this much!

"How do you know so much about cactuses anyway?" she asked a couple hours later when he paused to catch his breath.

He looked down and gave sad smile, "Before you came, I was alone. Except for Oji-san, no one really talked to me or wanted to play," he paused and looked at the cacti around him, "Growing these gave me something to do. They kind of inspired me."

Minoko blinked and digested what he said. She was unusually observant for a four year old. Her parents always said so. She was smart and collected knowledge like Gaara collected cacti. So after a few seconds her eyes widened in realization, "Wait, you _grew_ these?"

Gaara's face turned bright red as he looked away from her. He gave a slight nod.

"When did you have the time for all this?"

Gaara paused and looked like he wasn't sure if he wanted to tell her. She waited patiently for his answer. She found that if she waited, he would tell her things more easily than when she tried to pry.

He took a deep breath and looked at her. She was surprised to see a hint of fear in his eyes when he said, "I can't sleep at night."

"…ok, why not? Do you have bad dreams?"

He shifted from foot to foot and took another steadying breath, "I…I…well, you know how people avoid me and call me a monster?"

Minoko's eyes hardened when she thought of those meanies. She nodded and he slowly continued, "Well, they're not really wrong."

Minoko opened her mouth to protest, but snapped it shut when he continued, "Before I was born, the Kazekage sealed a demon in me. It's why I can control sand. And it's why I can't sleep. If I do, it will try to escape and people always get hurt when that happens." His voice grew softer with each word until Minoko had to strain to hear the end. He had closed his eyes at some point during the explanation and was shaking slightly.

Minoko did the only thing that came to mind. She quickly walked over and hugged him as tight as she could, "I'm so sorry Gaara."

She felt him shaking and felt a wet patch begin to grow on her shoulder. She started to cry a bit, too. Gaara was hurting so much and she never noticed. So much for her being observant. She was going to change that. She was going to be the best friend that she could so he wouldn't be sad again.

**…**

It took several minutes for Gaara to calm down. He slowly moved away from her and looked her in the eyes, "You're not scared?" he asked in a soft, scratchy voice.

Minoko shook her head immediately, "I will never be scared of you. You're my best friend."

Gaara smiled and wiped the last of the tears off of his face and nodded, "You're my best friend, too."

"I am curious about something you said earlier though," the raven-haired girl said with a confused look on her face.

Seeing Gaara's inquisitive look, she continued, "How in the world do cactuses inspire you?"

Gaara's mouth dropped open. It took him a few moments to speak, "You…I tell you that there's a demon sealed in me… and you ask me about my cacti?"

Minoko shrugged, if she wanted to learn more about the demon sealing thing, she'd ask later.

Gaara chuckled quietly and shook his head in disbelief, "Well, cacti can survive in really hot weather with very little water instead of dying like other plants that need water every day. They're strong, but people don't like them because of the thorns that cover them. Kind of like me," he blushed a bit, but continued, "I figured that if they could survive with only a little water, I could survive with the little acceptance that my uncle gives me. I didn't need anything more. At least, I thought that until I met you."

He looked up and she almost started crying again because of how he looked at her. Like she did something amazing for him that he could never repay.

"I thought my uncle was enough, but you were the rain I needed."

She smiled brightly and he joined her. Both laughed a bit and they relaxed into a comfortable silence.

Gaara glanced up at the glass ceiling and his eyes widened before he looked at her, "We have to go."

"What? Why?" she asked as she hurried after him. He didn't reply and just sprinted as fast as his legs would let him through the twisting paths back to the exit of the elaborate greenhouse. Minoko kept up with him and when they ran outside, she saw why he panicked. Her parents were going to be _sooo_ mad!

The only rules that they gave her while she went out to explore the village were to stay close to the building they lived in, don't make trouble for others, and to be home before sunset. She was definitely further away from the apartments than she usually was and now the street lamps were starting to be lit. The sun had long past the walls of Suna and she could even see some stars start to appear in the dark blue sky.

"Oh no," was all that she could get out, "I'll be grounded for a week!"

Gaara looked at her as she freaked out and put a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him as he gave a small smile, "I'll walk you home. Don't worry, I'll tell them that it's my fault you were late."

"But then they would be mad at you! That's not fair!"

"I don't mind," he said calmly as he started to walk towards her apartment complex, "I'm used to it coming from people that actually hate me. Your parents are nice. They'll get mad, but forgive me after a while."

Minoko looked over at him with a raised eyebrow, "You're too smart sometimes, did you know that?"

Gaara scoffed, "Like you're any different? I'm pretty sure most kids our age would be lost if they heard us talking. Plus you know I can't sleep. When I'm not working with my cacti, I'm either walking around the village at night, or I read. I've gone through all of my older sibling's books already. I even snuck a look at their books for the Academy."

Minoko looked at him with an excited gleam in her eyes, "Do you think you can sneak me some of those books? I love reading! My dad tries to get me more, but my mom says I'm already too smart for my age and tries to get me to do things that are more 'age appropriate;' whatever that means," she said as she rolled her eyes.

As they continued to make their way to her house, the streets got darker and the lamps were all lit, causing shadows to form and lengthen and a creepy, inconsistent glow illuminated the road at odd intervals.

Minoko nervously glanced at her companion and saw how relaxed he looked, "Aren't you scared? It's getting kinda scary out here."

He looked at her and said, "I just told you that I can't sleep at night. When I walk around Suna, I usually watch the villagers from a distance. Most of the people out here aren't that bad. Besides, even if something happened, nothing's ever hurt me before because of my sand. Don't worry, I'll protect you." She nodded and smiled, feeling better already.

But when a wall of sand suddenly rose in front of her, she nearly screamed. She turned to her friend to accuse him of scaring her when she noticed the shocked look on his face as well. He didn't know what was happening either.

Just as the wall started to lower, a different wall rose next to Gaara. This time, Minoko heard a dull thud as something hit the grains of condensed sand.

"What's happening," Minoko asks in a startled voice.

Gaara turned to her with a serious expression on his face, "You need to run. The shinobi that are attacking are probably after me. It's happened before. If you run, you should be safe."

The scared girl just looked at him like he had lost his mind. There was no way that she was going to leave him. What if he got hurt? She would never forgive herself. So, while shaking almost uncontrollably, Minoko tightened her grip on his hand and pulled him with her as she started to run.

The sand around them followed their footsteps and so did the consistent thumps coming from the other side of the barrier that now surrounded them in a circle. Her heart was beating like crazy! Were they going to die? She didn't want to die. She finally made a friend. She wanted to hear him laugh again like when he was on the swings or talking about his cactuses or when she said some stupid or embarrassing. She didn't want to die, so she ran with Gaara's hand firmly clasped in hers.

She didn't get very far with that, though, before she slammed face first into the normally protective wall of sand. She turned to Gaara and asked why he stopped. He just stared at her with wide eyes and whispered in horror, "They're in front of us."

Minoko felt tears start to go down her face. She was shaking as she turned to face Gaara fully and grabbed the hand she held in both of hers.

"What are we going to do?" she asked, her voice quivering in fright. Gaara saw her tears, wiped them away with his free hand.

"I promised that I would protect you and I will."

Minoko felt her vision start to gain a fuzzy appearance and at first thought that they were more tears. Then she felt that faint sensation in the back of her mind and knew that it was a dream bubble. She was about to pop it when she noticed something that made her gasp. She popped it quickly and looked up yelling, "Something's coming from above us!"

Gaara quickly raised his free hand up and the sand below their feet came out from under them to create a shield above their heads. Minoko almost fell at the sudden shift when the grains slipped from under her feet. She did collapse when she heard and felt the rumbling boom that came from all sides. Something huge exploded above and around them. She couldn't help it.

She screamed.

**A/N: This is my longest chapter yet! I was going to break it up into two, but I liked how it flowed together. **

**So what do you think? Secrets revealed and a threat unveiled! If you liked it, please leave a review! Until next time! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 4**

Minoko closed her eyes, her hands firmly held against her ears to block out the sound. She couldn't even hear herself scream, even though she knew that she was because her throat was starting to hurt. She had felt something soft and heavy lay on top of her the moment she fell to the ground, but she was too scared to look.

When the noise died down, she peeked one eye open. It was darker than before. She couldn't see a thing! She moved and felt the soft, heavy thing move off of her. The top of the sand dome opened a bit to let some light in and she realized that Gaara had tried to shield her from any damage.

He had a wild look in his eye as he stared out of the top of the sand dome. She had never seen that look on someone's face before. He grabbed his head and grimaced like he was in pain, but she didn't see any blood. Though it was hard to tell with the low lighting and the fact that his hair was the same color as blood would be.

He started to mutter quietly, but she could only make out a few words like "make", "pay", "kill", and "mother."

She reached out to take his hand again and the headache seemed to go away since the pained expression disappeared. He looked at her in shock, not seeming to know what to say or do. Neither did she. She hadn't felt this scared since the big fire at her old home.

Suddenly, a voice called out to them from outside the barrier asking if they were ok. Gaara somehow looked excited and calm at the same time when he heard the voice. He immediately lowered the rest of the sand shield to reveal Yashamaru standing on the other side. Minoko felt a rush of relief the moment his concerned face came into view.

He ran up to them and dropped to his knees. Gaara let go of her hand and almost collapsed in his uncle's arms.

"Yashamaru-oji-san, I was so scared! I thought that Minoko was going to get hurt because of me. Father was right, it's all my fault!" he cried.

Yashamaru looked up at her and opened his other arm for her. She quickly ran to join the hug and started to cry. He shushed them and picked them both up, "You're both ok now, the shinobi that attacked you are gone. They ran off when they saw me. You're safe."

He set them down on a bench nearby and crouched in front of them, "Now, are you ok? Any injuries?" he asked, holding up a green glowing hand.

Both children shook their heads and wiped away their tears.

"Can you tell me what happened? I'm going to have to report this to the Kazekage."

They told him everything they could remember about what happened. When they finished, Yashamaru paused a moment to think. He looked at them after about a minute and said, "I see. That's not good. Please make sure you guys are inside before nightfall for the next couple of weeks. I don't want you wandering around until we find out who attacked you." The kids both nodded rapidly, agreeing with his request instantly.

He stood up straight and looked around before glancing down at them on the bench again. He hesitated again before asking, "Would you two like to train with me? I could teach you about becoming a shinobi so that you won't get hurt as easily. And you'd be able to defend yourselves."

Gaara shifted in in his seat before looking his uncle in the eye, "Do you think that father would be ok with it?"

Yashamaru smiled, "If you want to train with me, I'll take care of it."

Gaara went quiet and looked like he was deep in thought.

Minoko sniffed one more time, dried her tears, and looked at Yashamaru, "I never want to feel like that again. I want to protect Gaara. He made sure I was safe, but I couldn't help him. Please train me!"

Gaara looked at her with wide eyes, then looked at his uncle with all the determination a four year old could have and nodded firmly.

Yashamaru smiled softly and nodded back, "Ok, then. I'll walk with you to take Minoko home. I should tell her parents what happened and make plans to schedule some training time with you."

When they got to the house, Kai Taru and Mizuno stood at the door with irate expressions on their faces. However, when Yashamaru briefly explained what happened to them, they quickly scooped up their daughter and hugged her close. Mizuno buried her face in her child's hair while rocking her back and forth.

Taru looked up at the other two standing in his doorway with a melancholy smile, "Thank you Gaara, Yashamaru. You brought her back safely. I can't even begin to imagine how I could repay you."

Yashamaru waved him off while Gaara blushed and shuffled his feet a bit.

"It's no problem," Yashamaru said, "I'm just sorry that your daughter was stuck in the middle of this mess," his expression turned a bit serious as he looked at Minoko's parents, "Though, to make sure that she stays safe, I have offered to give her some shinobi training. Just to learn how to defend herself if something like this should ever happen again."

Taru turned to his wife in concern while Mizuno gaped at the jonin. Her face went a bit red as she opened her mouth to speak when her husband cut her off.

"That would be appreciated, Yashamaru-san."

"Taru!" Mizuno exclaimed, turning to her husband with a look of betrayed disbelief.

"It's just self defense. You don't want her to be vulnerable do you?"

Mizuno's face went through several different emotions before settling on a small glare at her husband. She eventually gave a reluctant sigh as she held her daughter a bit closer, "Fine. Only for self-defense though. My daughter will not be a shinobi."

Yashamaru nodded in agreement and turned to leave, but Gaara didn't move. Yashamaru looked down at him quizzically as Gaara looked between his uncle and the Kai family hesitantly before speaking up.

"I want to stay with Minoko." He said in a nearly inaudible voice.

Her parents smiled a bit at the redhead and Taru said, "We'd be honored if you stayed. You two can have a sleepover. Well, as long as it's ok with your family."

Gaara looked to his uncle with hope shining in his eyes. Yashamaru chuckled a bit, "I'll stop by a little later tonight with some of Gaara's things."

Minoko whooped loudly and wriggled out of her parents' hold. She grabbed Gaara's hand and dragged him to her room before he could even thank his uncle. The adults smiled softly at each other before Yashamaru turned and left.

**…**

Later that night, Yashamaru knelt in front of the Kazekage. The leader of Sunagakure was intimidating at the best of times, but the sandy-blond haired shinobi still had a cold sweat forming all over his body. He really should be used to this by now.

"How did it go tonight?" asked the leader. His voice was void of emotion, especially since it concerned his youngest child.

Yashamaru lowered his head more, "Everything went according to plan, sir."

**A/N: Dun-dun-duuuuun! And that's it for chapter four. As always, let me know what you think by leaving a review!**


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 5**

Minoko dragged Gaara into her room. The owners of the complex said that they weren't allowed to paint, so her walls were light beige. Her bed, however, had an explosion of color. Her comforter was a light teal. Her pillows were a mixture of soft pink, sea foam green, and purple. Her pajamas that were tossed on top without a care were a deep red. And in the center of all the chaos was a spot of white.

Minoko made a beeline for the object. She picked it up and turned to present it to the still-captive Gaara, "This is Sugar. She was my only friend before I met you. She's really good at keeping secrets, too!"

Gaara slowly accepted the bear with his free hand and noted that while it was clean, it wasn't as soft as he thought it would be. His friend had probably had the stuffed animal for a while for it to be this worn. But he could see the love for it as well since it was still almost pure white. There was one spot of dirt that near its left eye that seemed to be a permanent characteristic.

He looked from bear to owner, wondering what he was supposed to do with it. Seeing the hesitation in his face, Minoko giggled lightly, "You're supposed to talk to her. Like I said, she's good at keeping secrets."

Gaara still hesitated, then asked Minoko, "What secrets did you tell her?"

Minoko stilled, gaining a pensive look on her face, and released Gaara's hand. She looked away and sat on her bed. Gaara, sensing that the mood changed, sat in the chair next to the desk by her bed. He held Sugar in his lap and waited for the raven-haired girl to speak.

"I want to tell you…I really do," she said in a soft voice, "My parents don't want me to talk about it, but you told me your secret earlier, so I think I should tell you mine."

Gaara saw her fidget with her hair that had become unbound at some point during the day. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but if you do, I promise not to tell."

Minoko smiled gratefully then looked down as she played with the ends of her hair. "I…I have a kekkei genkai," she said quietly, "I have dream bubbles that show me stuff that will happen in real life."

Gaara's eyes widened, "You see the future?"

Minoko bobbed her head, "I can't control what I see or when, but it happens sometimes. That's why I space out and don't hear you. I either have to pop it or wait for it to end by itself."

"What kind of stuff do you see?"

A fleeting smile went across her face, "All kinds of things. I saw us becoming friends. I saw my old village burning. I saw the loud bang earlier above us-"

"So that's how you knew about that!"

She nodded, "I also see silly stuff. One time I saw that we'd have okonomiyaki for dinner. In the market I saw that one couple would get in a fight a few minutes before it happened. I know that that one miko with the orange hair is going to have a baby soon-"

"That can't be right. The miko in Suna don't have babies," Gaara said with a scrunched up nose.

Minoko laughed, "You'll see in a few months. Her tummy is going to be really big!"

Gaara thought for a moment, "This morning you were talking about a weird dance."

Minoko nodded her head sagely, "I saw it before and asked mommy and daddy. They said it's a dance that only adults can do and they can only do it with the person they love the most."

Gaara tilted his head, "How is that weird?"

Minoko pointed one finger up and closed her eyes seriously, mimicking her mother when she was trying to teach her something new, "The weird part is that they weren't wearing any clothes and there was no music."

Gaara made a face, "That's strange. Why would they do that?"

Minoko shrugged, "No idea." She then stared at Gaara with narrowed eyes for a while, "Hmmm…"

"What?" he asked, feeling a bit anxious from her look.

"Well," she started, "Right now, other than mommy and daddy, you're the person that I love the most. So when we get older, we should dance!" she said with a wide grin.

Gaara thought about it for a moment, "I think you're the person I love the most, too. So it should be ok."

"What in the world are you two talking about!?"

Both kids whipped their heads around to see that the door was open.

"Hi daddy! We're talking about dancing!"

Gaara had a very bad feeling in his stomach when Taru-san smacked his own face then turned to stare a hole straight through him.

**A/N: Hey all! Sorry the chapter's shorter than usual, but it seemed like a good ending point. The next one will be a bit longer, I promise! **

**Please review and tell me what you think :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 6**

Three months later, Minoko and Gaara found themselves sitting in the shade of a large boulder at a small training ground near the Academy. Minoko was bouncing in place while Gaara just watched her with a small smile. They were waiting for Yashamaru-sensei to show up to begin their training, but Minoko just wanted to start already.

The past few months had been grueling. She would get up at 6am, meet at the training ground by 6:30, then do exercises to build stamina until about noon. After that she and Gaara would take a break for lunch. An hour later, they would be back at the training ground to work on katas and light sparring until nightfall. They would get Sundays off, but even then Gaara would go over to Minoko's house and bring books that he was able to sneak out. They would read and study anything they could get their hands on. Minoko made sure that she kept a couple dictionaries in her room so that they could look up the bigger words.

By the end of the second month, Yashamaru was going to help Minoko unlock her chakra, but was surprised to find that she had already done it herself. She didn't mention that it was because of her kekkei genkai and just shrugged and said it was because she read about it and wanted to try.

He was impressed and started teaching her and Gaara simple E ranked jutsu that were taught at the Academy. They both knew the theory behind them because Gaara had smuggled his older sister's textbooks to Minoko's house when she wasn't using them. Minoko found that she was able to perform each jutsu relatively quickly while Gaara always seemed to have trouble getting them right. Yashamaru-sensei just said it was because she had better chakra control and that Gaara had more chakra then he could handle well at this age. He gave Gaara a significant look and said that he would just need to practice. Gaara nodded and put his hand on his stomach subconsciously, so she figured that he was referring to the demon.

She completed those jutsu a week ago, and sensei promised her that today she would find out what her affinity was and start training her to use D rank elemental jutsu. Hence why she was currently found bouncing in place, waiting impatiently for him to arrive.

Gaara looked at her and noted the changes that he found. While she still had a rounded face, some of the baby-fat had smoothed out along her arms and legs. She now wore her long hair in a braid that wrapped around her head so that it wouldn't get in the way or stick in the sweat that accumulated on her neck and face. Her outfit consisted of a loose, long-sleeved crimson shirt that matched her eyes, black pants that were made out of a breathable material, and closed black boots that were sturdy and kept sand out from between her toes.

As he finished his general observation, he jumped a bit when Minoko suddenly shot up and started waving a greeting to his uncle that just came into view. Her waving became less enthusiastic and eventually slowed to a stop when she noticed the expression on her sensei's face. Gaara got up to stand next to her, a bad feeling starting to stir in his tummy.

Yashamaru didn't say anything at first and just looked at the two of them with a serious air and worry hidden in his eyes. The children were silent, waiting to see what happened.

Yashamaru took a deep breath before letting out a resigned sigh, "Minoko, the Kazekage wants to have a word with you."

While Minoko just looked curious, Gaara's bad feeling sank like a rock in the pit of his stomach. He felt nauseous from the single sentence and instinctively took a protective step in front of the girl. His uncle spared him a glance and tried to smile, but it turned to look more like a grimace, "He said you could come if you want, Gaara."

"She won't go alone," was his only reply as he stared at his uncle.

Minoko looked between them and started to feel her nerves creep up. She was actually going to meet the leader of the village.

**…**

Minoko tried not to fidget too much as she stood in the oppressive room with the most powerful man in the village. Yashamaru was told to wait outside, so he was standing by the door to wait for them while Gaara stood a bit in front of her. She internally smiled at his protective nature.

The Kazekage stood from his seat behind his desk and walked around to stand in front of the children, his hands clasped behind his back, "I've heard some interesting things about you, Kai Minoko," he stated in a deep timber.

"Sir?" she asked meekly, not really sure where this was going.

"It seems as though you have completed an impressive amount of work these last few months. From the reports that I've received, you have completed the bunshin, kawarimi, and henge."

"Yes, Kazekage-sama. Yashamaru-sensei was going to test my elemental affinity today, too."

The man just nodded and glanced at Gaara, noting the boy's clenched jaw and fisted hands, "I see. I will be blunt. I want you to be a shinobi of Suna. If you refuse, you will stop training immediately."

Minoko froze. Stop training? If she couldn't train, then she wouldn't get strong enough to protect Gaara!

The boy in question grit his teeth, "She is four. Why should she be a shinobi already? She should go to the academy with me first," he said with a growl-edged voice.

The Kazekage looked down at the boy in a dismissive manner, "She has the necessary qualifications and going to the academy would be redundant. On that note, you, too, could be a shinobi. It is about time you proved your usefulness anyway."

Gaara was shaking slightly, out of fear or anger, Minoko didn't know, but she took a small step forward which bought the attention back to herself, "If I'm a shinobi, will Yashamaru-sensei still teach Gaara and me together?"

Gaara turned to her with wide eyes, "What are you saying? You wanted to be a baker or something, not a-"

"Of course. Yashamaru would be free to teach you," the Kazekage stated, ignoring the fact that he cut off the protesting child.

Minoko took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and looked to her leader. _If it means that I can protect those around me, I'll do anything,_ she thought.

"I will become a Suna shinobi," she said, sending an apologetic glance to her friend.

Gaara looked at her in disbelief for a few seconds before sighing lightly, "I will join her."

The Kazekage didn't so much as glance at the red head, and instead stared right at the young girl, "Very well. I am curious to know how you seem to comprehend so much material while you've been training though," he said as he turned to go back to his desk, "Most children your age would have trouble with the concepts of the jutsu, while you excel within days." He pulled out some paperwork and read it over as he waited for a response.

Minoko hesitated a moment. He was her leader, right? She should tell him, right?

"Well, I like to read. And I kinda have dream bubbles that help-"

Gaara quickly grabbed her hand and squeezed hard to stop her from saying more. Minoko looked at him and saw that look on his face and closed her mouth.

The Kazekage, either not noticing or simply not caring enough to comment on the sudden end to her statement, nodded and said, "Of course, imagination can be an advantage for those in this field. Just be sure that you aren't distracted by it when the time comes for you to take on missions."

"Yes, Kazekage-sama," she said in a quiet voice.

The Kazekage finished signing off the last paper and reached into his desk. He pulled out two forehead protectors and handed them to the children, "Tie these to your persons and see to it that you do not bring shame to this symbol. You are now shinobi under my command, not simply children. You will start tomorrow. Send Yashamaru in when you leave. Dismissed."

The children both bowed and hurried to exit. Yashamaru smiled down at them a bit hesitantly and ducked into the office when they gave him the message.

Once the door closed, Minoko found her wrist caught in the firm grip of her best friend as he dragged her down the stairs and out of the building. She had opened her mouth to ask him what was going on, but snapped it shut when he turned to glare at her. She has never seen him glare before. He had never been angry at her before. She felt dread pool in her stomach. Did she do something wrong?

Gaara finally released her sore wrist when they arrived at their usual training field. She held it close to her chest and watched as he paced back and forth, grabbing a handful of his own hair every once in a while out of frustration. He finally turned to her, an unreadable look in his eyes. She was slightly caught off guard by the golden tint to them and was about to comment when he spoke again, "What were you thinking?" he asked in a gravely, disbelieving tone.

"What-?"

"He's not a good man!" Gaara shouted, throwing his hands in the air, "He doesn't care about anyone. He'll just use you and hurt you!" Tears started forming in his eyes and his voice got softer, "You wanted to be a baker, or a painter, or something. Why did you say you'd be a shinobi? You can't ever quit."

Minoko shrank back a bit, her lip trembling, "I wanted to be strong to protect you. If I can't train, I can't be strong. I don't mind…I could still bake or paint at home."

Gaara turned to pace back and forth for a few more minutes before he sighed, sounding much too old for his years again. He rubbed his head and looked at her. She was relieved to see that his eyes their normal, pretty teal color again. He rubbed his forehead again, "Ok. Ok. So how are you going to tell your parents?"

Minoko paled at the thought, "Kami, they're going to kill me," she whispered.

Gaara shook his head in reluctant amusement and took her hand, more gently this time, "I'll walk you home. I'll stay with you when you tell them."

Minoko looked up from her thoughts of the horrible punishments that awaited her; no sweets, no books or games, no sweets, no playing with Gaara…no sweets.

She shook her head at the familiar statement and pulled him to a stop. When he turned to her with a questioning look, she smiled. Minoko took his hands and put them around her waist while her arms wrapped around his neck, "You're my best friend, I love you bunches and bunches, and we'll be together forever!"

Gaara let out a puff of air and rolled his eyes, "I thought this was how you say goodbye. I'm not leaving yet," he said while he gently squeezed her back.

Minoko giggled as she pulled away slightly to look at him, "It's also a way to say thank you. I don't know what I'd do if you weren't with me."

Gaara smiled tenderly at her back as she let go of his neck and began to drag him back to her place. _I don't know what I'd do without you either._

**A/N: Genin at age 4. Unheard of? Yes. Plausible? They're ninja and this is fanfiction, so yes. Suspicious? Probably. :D**

**Please review and let me know what you think will happen! Shout-out to **_**YummyGummies-UwU**_**for**** leaving the first review for this story! Thank you!**


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Before we begin, I want to give a big thank you to xXSakuraBlossomsXx for your review! I appreciate you :D**

**Chapter 7**

"What do you mean 'Minoko is a genin'!?" Mizuno screeched.

Yashamaru put the cup of tea he was offered onto the table. He was sitting with his student's parents while the children were in the other room. He could tell by their chakra that they were still listening in on the conversation, but considering that it was about them, he didn't feel that it was something that he should reprimand them for. If anything, he made a mental note to train them to conceal the chakra better.

Back to the matter at hand, Yashamaru looked at the couple seated opposite him. Taru had his jaw clenched in an attempt to reign in his emotions. Mizuno, on the other hand, was filled with rage and wasn't about to hide it.

"It's just as it sounds," he said calmly, "The Kazekage gave Minoko a choice, and she chose to pursue a career as a shinobi. He filled out the paperwork immediately and she was given her hitai-ate. It's a done deal and, unfortunately, you can't do anything about it. I'm here as a formality to inform you."

"A formality!? What the hell is going on!? She's just a little girl!" Mizuno screamed. Taru put a hand on his wife's shoulder and looked at Yashamaru.

"Why weren't we asked about this?" he asked in a firm tone, "We're her parents. She's a child that shouldn't be able to make these decisions on her own."

Yashamaru nodded his head, "I understand where you're coming from, but the Kazekage saw the maturity and drive that Minoko has. Honestly, there is no law in Suna that states that a parent has to give consent to their child becoming a shinobi. As long as the child expresses their desire to join, that's all that matters."

Mizuno collapsed in her chair, a vacant look of disbelief clouding her features, "So there's nothing we can do? Our daughter's going to be a killer? How did this even happen?"

Yashamaru felt a sense of pity come over him for the couple, "She's a very talented individual and we have high hopes for her. She-"

"You said that you were just training her to defend herself!" Mizuno cut in as she glared at the sandy haired shinobi, "You tricked us! How dare you come in here and steal my baby away from me!"

"Honey, please-" Taru tried to cut in.

"No! It's your fault, too!" she yelled, tears streaming down her face, "I wanted her to be a child longer. You just had to keep giving her more books and ideas. He said that the Kazekage thought Minoko was mature! Why do you think that is?" she said as she stood from her seat.

"Now wait a minute," Taru bellowed, rising from his chair as well, "Minoko was bored! She's a bright kid. If I only gave her picture books for normal kids her age, she would have suffered!"

"Well, now she'll never be normal, will she? She's going to be a killer," stated Mizuno, her voice going cold, "Her childhood is over."

Yashamaru watched helplessly, and a bit awkwardly, as the couple in front of him started arguing with one another. This was not going as well as he had hoped.

"Please, both of you, calm down-"

Mizuno's sharp burgundy eyes cut to him, "Calm? Why the hell should I be calm? You've taken my daughter from me."

"She's still your daughter," Yashamaru stated in a cool tone, "She'll still live here and give you hugs in the morning. She'll still call you mommy and love you with all her heart. But if you keep talking like that while she's listening at the door, she's going to think that you don't want her anymore."

Mizuno's face fell, instantly horrified as she turned to see Minoko standing in the doorway clinging desperately to Gaara's hand. Her little girl had tears in her eyes as she looked at her in fear, "Mommy?"

Her baby was scared of her. Mizuno's initial reaction was to go to her, scoop her up in her arms, and reassure her that she was loved. But then her eyes slid down to her daughter's neck, where she tied her new hitai-ate, and her eyes hardened.

This wasn't her baby anymore.

"Maybe I don't," she stated in an apathetically distant voice. To the shock of everyone in the room, Mizuno simply turned and strode out the door.

"Mizuno!" Taru called after her. He turned to see his daughter crumble to the ground, crying and choking on sobs that were probably supposed to be words. Gaara held her protectively and looked at Taru with cold eyes. Taru immediately walked up to the pair and reached out to touch his daughter's head. He jumped when a wall of sand came up to block him, his eyes darting to look at the young boy.

"Gaara," Yashamaru's voice came from the table, "Calm yourself."

"I am calm, uncle. But I won't let them hurt her more," the red-head stated in an even tone. Minoko kept her crying face against his shoulder, too scared to look up.

Taru got down on his knees in front of the two kids and looked into Gaara's eyes, "I will never hurt Minoko. No matter what happens, or what Mizuno thinks, she's my little girl. Even if she wants to be a shinobi, I'll support her and love her."

Minoko hesitantly looked at her dad and choked on a sob. She flung herself into his arms a moment later and cried, "W-what abou-about mo-mom-my?"

Taru patted her head and rubbed her back, "I don't know," he whispered, "But everything will work out. I'll always be by your side," he looked up slightly to see worried sea foam gazing at the bawling bundle in his arms, "And I'm sure Gaara will be there, too."

The red-head looked at him with his piercing gaze and nodded. Minoko sniffled a bit more before she looked at Gaara with a pained, watery smile.

Yashamaru sighed quietly. Yes, this wasn't at all what he had hoped for. But he supposed that he had to make the most of it.

**A/N: ****Honestly, not where I originally wanted the story to go. But Mizuno didn't want to be written in the forgiving manner that I originally intended. *shrugs* Ah well.**

**Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**I'd like to thank **_**Yakitori-Chan **_**for their review! I really appreciate your support :D**

**Chapter 8**

Minoko walked to the training grounds in a daze. Mommy never came back after she walked out last night. She couldn't help but blame herself, even though her daddy tried to tell her that it wasn't her fault. She knew that he was lying.

Mommy always loved her before she decided to be a shinobi. Sure, mommy wanted her to learn how to bake and sew and paint and yelled at her when she wanted to stop to play outside or read big kid books, but mommy said that it was so she could have a normal life. Mommy liked simple, normal things. Minoko was a little girl, so she needed to know how to do things like other little girls. When she was older, she could read different things, but she would only be allowed to read age appropriate books.

If it hadn't been for daddy, Minoko didn't know what she would have done. She would have been _sooo_ bored. She didn't mind simple things, but she also loved adventure and learning as much as she could. Daddy knew that and would bring her new books when mommy wasn't home. He would get yelled at later, but he shrugged it off and would do it again after a while.

Minoko sighed. Her life was going to change so much. Why couldn't she have had a dream bubble that warned her about this?

"Minoko, good morning," came a timid voice.

She looked up and realized that she arrived. She smiled at her friend as best as she could.

Gaara had been worried that it was his fault too. He knew she agreed to become a shinobi so that she could protect him. He apologized several times last night, even when she and daddy said that he shouldn't blame himself. Daddy said that Gaara stayed until she fell asleep before going home.

_What would I do without him?_ she thought.

Minoko's smile became more real as she walked over to him. She grabbed his arms and put them around her waist while hers went around his shoulders, "You're my best friend, I love you bunches and bunches, and we'll be together forever," she whispered into his shoulder.

She felt him squeeze her lightly before he pulled back. He had a small, genuine smile on his face, "What was that for?" he asked.

Minoko shrugged, trying to act as carefree as she ordinarily would, "I fell asleep before you left last night and didn't get to say goodbye. Plus it's a thank you, too."

Gaara's brow scrunched a bit in confusion, "Thank me? For what?"

Minoko smiled more fully, "For being the bestest best friend ever!"

Gaara blushed a bit and opened his mouth to respond before a different voice called out, "I'm glad that you're both here on time. Training from here on out will be even more difficult than before."

Gaara looked over to his uncle, "Yashamaru-oji-san, can't Minoko take a break from training today? She-"

"No Gaara. You both are genin now. As shinobi of Suna, you have a duty to your village," Yashamaru stated in a firm tone, "There will be times in the future when you're exhausted, your comrades have died in battle, or something back home has made you emotional. You will want to stop, to quit, but you will keep going because that is your mission. That is your duty."

Both children looked at each other briefly before they straightened up, both remaining silent. Yashamaru nodded in approval, "From now on, Gaara, you will call me Yashamaru-sensei everywhere except when we are home. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sensei."

"Good," Yashamaru's features softened slightly and the genin relaxed their stances, "Now, I believe that I promised to find out your affinities."

Yashamaru turned to hide his smile at their squeals of delight. He'd let that go for now. Genin or not, they were still children.

**…**

It turned out that Gaara's talent with sand didn't only come from the demon sealed within him. He had a duel affinity to wind and earth which manifested into a kekkei genkai of his own. It was reminiscent of the Third's control over iron dust and the Fourth's control over gold dust. Gaara's innate skill was, however, greatly enhanced by the demon.

Minoko, on the other hand, had an affinity towards earth. This meant that Yashamaru would train the both of them in earth style techniques when they were all together and find a tutor for Gaara that could control wind. Yashamaru vaguely remembered a jonin that was recently promoted that was skilled with wind blades. Baki was his name, wasn't it?

Yashamaru shrugged at the thought and turned to his students to dismiss them for lunch. They had been working on a chakra control exercise all morning that allowed them to get in tune with their element. They needed to take a rock and, using only chakra, turn it into sand, then back into solid rock again. Gaara was able to do the first part fairly well, almost instinctively, on his very first try. The second part seemed to stump him, though, causing him to glare at the grains in his hand. Yashamaru would never admit that it was adorable.

Minoko took about two hours before she could dissolve the rock in her hands completely. But an hour after that, she was able to reharden a small pebbles-worth of the fist-sized rock. She truly was a prodigy. He wouldn't be surprised if she could reform the rock completely by the end of the day.

Yashamaru clapped his hands, gaining his pupils' attention, "Time for a break. You both did well. Get some food and rest to replenish your energy, then be back here in two hours."

Minoko flopped onto her back dramatically in over exaggerated exhaustion. Gaara walked to stand over her and said something quietly, causing the young girl to giggle and jump to her feet. She grabbed his hand and pulled the gently smiling red head behind her out of the training grounds.

Once they were out of sight, Yashamaru's features settled into a blank mask. The Kazekage wanted them to start missions tomorrow. For the first week, he knew that they would only help around the village, but the sandy-haired medic knew that it would only be a matter of time before they were sent out of these walls.

No matter what, he couldn't let himself get attached to them.

**A/N: That wraps up chapter 8! Sorry that I was a day late in uploading the new chapter. I'll try to make sure that it doesn't become a habit :) Let me know what you think! **


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 9**

Minoko slumped down in her seat with a sigh, her head gently banging onto the table. Thank kami for air conditioning! She could hear the person across from her try to cover a snicker, so she raised her head slightly to stick out her tongue. Gaara merely shook his head at her antics. Minoko grudgingly pushed herself upright when a nervous looking waiter started fidgeting in front of her table.

Looking up at him, she noticed that the guy was trying to focus on her while sneaking anxious glances at her companion, "W-what can I get f-for you today?"

Minoko looked to Gaara. He was the one that dragged her here, he could order for her. She initially wanted to go to the udon stand. The red-head rolled his eyes and looked to the jumpy mess of a man before them and calmly said, "I'll have the salted gizzard. She'll take the gyoza set with miso soup. Iced oolong tea as well for the both of us."

The waiter nodded rapidly and scurried away. Minoko just shook her head. Even after several months, she still found it somewhat amusing that grown men were terrified of a four year old. She would laugh if she wasn't also really mad at how they treated her friend.

"Minoko, are sure you're ok with this? It's only been a day. Maybe you can talk to the Kazekage to become a civilian again."

Minoko's eyes snapped to his face, but her initial retort died on her lips when she saw the worried tension in his body. She grabbed the glass of oolong that seemed to magically appear on the table and twirled the straw before taking a sip.

"I'm not quitting," she said simply, "I know what I signed up for, I know that mommy might never forgive me, but I want to do this."

Gaara hesitated for a moment before nodding his head and taking a drink from his own glass, "You need to be careful around him though."

Minoko tilted her head a bit, "Who? Yashamaru-sensei?"

Gaara shook his head a bit, "The Kazekage. He's…he's not a good man."

"You said that yesterday, too. Is he really that bad?"

"He sealed a demon in me before I was even born," Gaara stated in a deadpan tone.

A squeak of terror was heard from the waiter that quickly sat down their food and disappeared into the back kitchen.

Minoko shook her head again at the jittery waiter when something about the day before popped into her head, "You stopped me from telling him about my dream bubbles. If he's my boss, shouldn't he know about that? I thought that the Kazekage was supposed to know everything about his shinobi."

Gaara chewed a bite of gizzard for longer than necessary and swallowed before answering, "I just had a really bad feeling when you started to tell him," he whispered, looking away from her, "Please, Minoko, please don't ever tell him about that. I…I don't want to lose you," his voice barely audible.

Minoko sighed and knelt on the chair a bit to reach across the table and take his hand, giving it a small squeeze, "Ok, I won't tell. I'll never leave you."

Gaara smiled shyly as she sat back down in her chair. They finished the rest of their meal in silence and paid before getting up to walk around the village until their break finished. As they walked around a corner, one of the few temples in Suna came into view, causing both kids to stop dead in their tracks. Sweeping the entryway was a woman in her mid-twenties with bright orange hair that was tied into a neat braid going down her back. Her green eyes were bright and kind as she nodded to passersby while doing her daily task efficiently. What really caught the two children's eyes, however, was the fact that she was very obviously pregnant; her stomach stretching the confines of her miko uniform.

Gaara looked at Minoko with wide eyes and whispered in wonder, "You were right."

A moment later, the two children busted out laughing, causing several villagers to give them a wide berth. Neither child really cared at that point and just enjoyed the release of tension, the pleasant way that their stomachs ached from the laughter, and the companionship that they would always treasure.

**...**

Minoko flopped down on the couch face first the moment she came home that evening. She was worn-out! Yashamaru-sensei wasn't kidding when he said that his was going to up their training.

While the chakra control exercise took up a majority of their time, that didn't mean that sensei didn't have them do physical exercises, too. When she started to get low on chakra, sensei would have her do sit-ups, push-ups, and laps around the training field until she thought her arms and legs would fall off! When she got to that point, her chakra was usually replenished enough for her to start the chakra exercises again.

The good thing that came out of it was that she was able to finish the exercise by the end of the day. She beat Gaara by a landslide! She thought that Yashamaru-sensei would have been more proud of her, but he looked like he expected that and just told her that she would have to practice enough so that she could turn the rock to sand and back within seconds. Minoko banged her head into the pillows of the couch lightly at the thought.

"Hey sweetheart, everything ok?"

Minoko raised her head less than an inch off of the couch, grunted, and let her head fall back down with a plop.

Kai Taru chuckled at his daughter's plight and sat at the end of the worn, brown couch near her head. He ran his hand through her hair which she had undone from its tight braid as soon as she had come in the door. He brushed out the tangles with his fingers and smiled gently when she sighed in contentment. No matter what happened, he would always cherish small moments like this.

"I found something today," Taru said softly. A small sound of curiosity came from the half-asleep lump.

"When I went through my closet, I found an old family scroll. It had some information about your dream bubbles."

Minoko was instantly sitting up and staring at him intently, all signs of exhaustion absent from the young girl.

"Can I see it?" she asked eagerly.

Taru laughed lightly, "I wouldn't have brought it up if I wasn't going to let you read it." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a thin scroll, handing it over to the slightly bouncing girl.

Minoko took it with care and gently unrolled the yellowing paper, reading over every word written by her ancestors.

_The __**Kami no Me**__, or Eyes of God, is a kekkei genkai that has been passed down in the Kai family for generations. This source of insight has been granted to a precious few; a single individual at most for each generation. When one bearing this power is found, he or she gains a vast amount of power within the clan. Their word or opinion is given greater weight and they are usually placed in a position of authority._

_Those that have this power are able to have waking dreams, or visions, that tell of the future. Some visions are mundane, while others could turn the tide of history itself if used correctly. All that have been reported to have this kekkei genkai have never been able to control what they see or when they see it. But they have all agreed that trying to control the visions would be like trying to become a god. It is too much power for one individual to have. _

_While the powers themselves are extraordinary, the risks that come with it are equally devastating. It is said that those that were born with this insight to the future had a tendency to go mad with grief the older they became. While rare, there would be times when a prophecy was ignored or misinterpreted, resulting in casualties or other misfortunes. Other times when tragedy struck, those with the Kami no Me would be blamed for not foreseeing the disaster and preventing heartbreak. The guilt, at times, came to weigh so heavily on the_ _conscience of the gifted that they would lose their will to live. It is strongly recommended that those bearing the kekkei genkai receive a strong emotional support in the form of family and friends in order to curb this despair._

_There is one other warning to future generations that I would like to give. When word of the Kami no Me reached the ears of those in power of the country and shinobi villages, our people were targeted for their powers. Many tried to kidnap Kai family members in the hopes to use their powers to further wars and gain political influence. The Kai clan has never indulged in fighting. We seek a peaceful existence and attempt to stay hidden. However, when shinobi came and raided our homes for those that possess the Kami no Me, we knew that we couldn't let those with selfish desires gain this advantage. We killed all who possessed the gift of foresight._

_As tragic as this sounds, we did it for the betterment of our family, and more importantly, for the world. If this power falls into the hands of the corrupt, no man, woman, or child will be safe. It is recommended that none outside the Kai family learn this secret. Although, it is believed that the kekkei genkai is now lost with those that perished, as there have been no new visions in almost three generations. If there is ever a chance that our family produces another Seer, I have to say one last thing to say to the Kai family legacy. Protect those that are dear to you and beware the corrupt in this world._

Minoko reread the scroll twice, hands shaking slightly, before rolling it back up and silently thanked Gaara for not letting her tell the Kazekage yesterday. She handed the scroll back to her father. He took it and waited for her to speak.

"Daddy," she said after taking a moment to gather her thoughts, "thank you."

Taru's brow furrowed a bit in confusion, "For what sweetie?"

Minoko looked up and Taru's heart melted at the tears glittering in her crimson eyes, "Thank you for letting me read the scroll, for being there for me. You're the best daddy that I could have asked for."

Taru smiled and reached over to pull his daughter into his lap, giving her a big hug. Her small arms wrapped around his neck in quiet contentment, "Always, Minoko. I will always be here for you. Even after my last breath."

They held each other for a few minutes until Minoko pulled back and looked at her dad with slight scrutiny, "Daddy, why were you going through your closet? Were you just looking for the scroll?"

Taru stilled and Minoko knew that she shouldn't have asked, "Minoko…your mother…she's not coming back," Taru said in a troubled tone. He knew that he couldn't- shouldn't- keep this hidden from her, "She wanted me to pack her things and deliver them to her new residence."

Minoko's eyes widened in disbelief. She had known that mommy was angry. She knew that mommy didn't want her to be a shinobi. But to leave…forever?

Tears started to leak from Minoko's eyes without her noticing, her gaze staying straight ahead, "It's my fault," she whispered. Taru scooped her up into an embrace again, shushing her softly as she cried.

She noticed, however, that he didn't try to deny her claim this time.

**A/N: Hey all! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review!**


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 10**

The next two weeks flew by. The first week was spent doing D-rank missions- aka chores- around the village. Minoko had to babysit (which was honestly really awkward considering she was only four), go shopping for the elderly, retrieve the _same_ lost gecko at least _six times_, and sweep out shops that had sand piled high inside. The last one she found extra annoying because Gaara could have just willed it out of the building. But nooooo, the shop keepers wouldn't allow Gaara inside their shop... period... so she was stuck doing unnecessary manual labor. Now that she thought about it, he wasn't allowed near the children either...or the elderly...or lost pets...

Minoko hung her head as she realized that, while she and Gaara were a team of sorts, they never really did those missions together. He would follow her to the mission locations, get kicked out of wherever they were, then wait for her outside until she was finished. Her hands balled up when thinking about those complete assho-!

_Breathe, Minoko, breathe._ She thought to herself, _No bad words, no bad words. Don't say them, don't think them, just breathe._She sighed deeply and rubbed her temples in agitation.

The second week was better. Yashamaru, seeing how things were going in the village, apparently requested low C-rank missions for them outside the village. Minoko was thankful for that. Gaara might be sweet and could ignore the blatant idiocy of the villagers, but she was coming this close to hurting the next person that disrespected her friend.

Her dad was a bit nervous when she mentioned the C-ranks outside the village. She would be gone for a few days at a time because of them. He took the day off from his job to get her some camping equipment and rations so that she would be better prepared for her missions. If he hugged her a little tighter before she left each time, she never mentioned it.

They were able to complete two C-ranks during that second week. The first was to go to a neighboring village in Kaze no Kuni and help them exterminate a large nest of horned desert vipers that had taken up residence on the outskirts. One child had mistakenly stumbled upon it while playing and paid for it with his life. Normally people could be easily treated with anti-venom, but apparently the child didn't want to have his friends think he was a sissy, so he didn't tell an adult until it was too late. Regardless, the low toxicity of the vipers was the reason it was a low C-rank. It would have even been a D-rank had it not been a full day's journey to that village.

They went on their second C-rank two days after they returned from the first. It dealt with going to the border between Kaze no Kuni and Kawa no Kuni to gather medicinal herbs for the hospital. Again, it was only a C-rank because of the travel distance.

They returned from that mission the day before. Going into week three, Minoko suspected that they would do another long-distance-D-rank-that's-disguised-as-a-C-rank soon.

She sighed as she reclined in the shade of the boulder of her usual training ground when she felt a small prickle in the back of her skull. Knowing it was a dream bubble (she could never bring herself to call it the Kami no Me) she let herself sink into it.

_ Minoko stared straight ahead on in shock. It was supposed to be a simple mission! How could something like this happen!? She watched as Gaara looked at her in horror. Minoko looked down and saw the tip of a katana poking through her chest, blood slowly pooling at her feet. Looking back up at Gaara, she saw his face morph into one of pure rage, his eyes a haunting yellow. Her vision became fuzzy and the last thing she could see was Yashamaru-sensei running towards her as Gaara slammed her assailant into a strange rock formation._

Minoko gasped for breath as she sat up quickly, eyes wide and a bit wild. It took her several deep breaths to calm her racing heart. What the hell? Did she just die!?

"-ko. Minoko!" she heard her name being called. It was only then that she noticed a small hand rubbing gentle circles into her back. She took one more steadying breath before looking into concerned sea foam eyes. Beautiful sea foam eyes. Not yellow.

Minoko just barely resisted the urge to hug Gaara, knowing that it would only worry him more, "I'm fine. Sorry."

"What happened? You looked like you were having your dream bubble, then you just...panicked. I tried calling your name, but you didn't respond for a while."

"Sorry," she said again, trying to get her heart to slow back down, "it was just...a bit shocking."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

Minoko hesitated. She didn't want to worry him needlessly. If she told him that she was going to be skewered like a shish kabob, he'd never let her out of his sight.

As childish as it might sound, she didn't want the constant surveillance to ruin her surprise for him. His birthday was next week and she was able to find him the perfect present! Plus her daddy said that he would help her decorate their living room so that they could have a small birthday party for him. If Gaara was always hovering over her in worry, he'd figure it out!

So Minoko schooled her features and smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry. It probably won't happen for a long time. It just surprised me."

Gaara searched her face for a moment, a worried crease furrowed between his non-existent eyebrows. He didn't believe her for even one second, but let it go when he saw that she didn't want to talk about it, "Alright. Come on, we need to go to your place and grab your stuff. We're going out again."

Minoko noticed Gaara's pack sitting beside them, "Already? We just got back yesterday."

Gaara shrugged, so she did as well and stood up, the adrenaline from earlier finally wearing off enough for her to breathe easily. As long as they got back within five days, she should have enough time to get everything prepared. They quickly dropped by her place long enough for her to grab her gear and leave a note for her dad.

_It's probably fine,_ she thought as she greeted her sensei at the gate. Despite her best efforts, the images in the dream bubble weighed heavily on her mind. She stubbornly refused to let it bug her though. She had an official mission to complete, then an unofficial one when they came back. She'd worry about it after Gaara's birthday. She didn't lie to Gaara either. The dream bubble most likely wouldn't happen for a while…right?

They all turned to leave and Minoko took a quick look back at Suna when they topped the first dune and gave a small smile, _Yeah, it's probably going to be fine._

**A/N: Dun, dun, duuuuun! Let the mission...begin!**

**Please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 11**

This was probably the most degrading, yet absurd, mission that they had done so far. Who in the world sends two almost-five-year-olds and a medic to do reconnaissance on group of bandits? Oh right, their Kazekage would.

Yashamaru-sensei said that this mission was supposed to be a show of trust from the Kazekage. _Sure, trust,_ Minoko suppressed a sigh as she wandered through the streets of a small town on the boarder of Ishi no Kuni, keeping an ear out for more information. Ishi was in a smaller country sandwiched between Kaze no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni. Even though the town with the bandit problem was in Ishi, the criminals' camp was situated on the other side of the boarder in Kaze. This meant that while the town being ransacked was outside of their usual jurisdiction, the bandits were Suna's problem because of their location.

Minoko and Gaara were posing as cousins traveling with their uncle to find a new home after theirs was destroyed by a mudslide near the border. When they first entered the close-knit town, the villagers were a bit wary. However, after telling their sob story and flashing harmless smiles to the local residents, it seemed like it was enough to melt their hearts and ease their suspicions. Minoko just felt awkward.

So far, she had to behave like a baby, act like she didn't understand what the adults were talking about, and she was watched constantly by 'caring individuals' wherever she went so she didn't get hurt when she was running errands for her uncle. If it wasn't for Gaara and sensei talking with her like an intellectual human being when they were alone together, she would most likely have gone crazy from all the baby talk. Seriously, how do normal kids her age stand this? She felt absolutely smothered! If this wasn't a mission, she would have left a long time ago.

Unfortunately it _was_ a mission, so she was stuck there until they could get enough information about the situation so the Kazekage could send an appropriate team to take care of things. Minoko was currently walking hand in hand with her 'cousin' as they looked around the market for supper while also paying close attention to the whispering of the adults. Luckily they were mostly ignored or dismissed due to being so young. Adults were so stupid sometimes.

"Ni-san!" she said with a tilt of her head, "We get oranges? Oranges yummy."

Gaara patted her on the head, "K k Mimi-chan. We get some."

Minoko inwardly cringed at the sentences coming out of their mouths. She hadn't talked like this since she was two! They both looked over the produce as they listened to the stand owner talking with an elderly woman.

"Did you hear?" he said in a low voice, "They took Sasaki's kid this time."

"That poor dear," said the woman, a hand to her mouth, "What do you think they're doing to the child?"

"Not much of a child anymore Sumi-san. She's been grown for years. You know what's probably happening."

Sumi cringed a bit, "True. So unpleasant. When is Ishigakure going to do something about this? She's the third girl this month."

The stand owner shook his head solemnly, "Who knows?"

Minoko looked to Gaara. He nodded and grabbed a couple oranges and fished some change out of his pocket. The adults were silent as the owner rang up their purchase. The two children walked calmly back toward their hotel room and slipped inside.

They had only been in the city for two days and they already heard many similar stories about the group they were after. Kidnapping, extorting money or supplies, random acts of violence. This group was not made of nice people. Yashamaru-sensei found out that they were led by a chunin level shinobi. There were a few people that had some shinobi training mixed into the group, most likely Academy drop-outs, but it was predominately made up of civilian thugs.

An hour or so later Minoko looked up from her book that she had taken out to pass the time when the door clicked open and sensei walked in. Honestly, she hadn't really been reading anyway. Her nerves were strung tight with a combination of the mission and her dream bubble that she'd had before leaving Suna.

If she was being truthful to herself, she knew that she didn't look that great at the moment either. Her paranoia was keeping her from sleeping well at night. Of course, Gaara noticed. He never slept, so he could see her tossing and turning at night. He would just give her a look filled with concern that she would shrug off. She knew he was getting worried because of her. She hadn't spoken about what happened since they left the village, but she wasn't really sure what to say or do about it. She knew that she should probably tell him what she saw, but...

_I'll tell him after his birthday,_ she decided, nodding her head slightly while her forehead creased in mild worry, _That should work. Then he can help watch out for-_

She snapped out of her daze with a jump when a hand waved in front of her face. She caught the hand and started twisting before stopping abruptly once she registered that it belonged to the aforementioned worried redhead.

The silence that followed drew out uncomfortably as she slowly let go of his wrist and chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head. Sensei was the first to break the uneasy hush.

"Minoko, I wasn't going to bring this up, but are you alright? You seem more jumpy than usual," he inquired while placing a glowing green hand against her forehead.

Minoko exhaled slowly and allowed Yashamaru-sensei to run a diagnostic jutsu on her. "I'm ok, sensei. I think I'm just getting homesick is all. Ishi no Kuni is so different from Kaze no Kuni," she said, hoping he'd buy the excuse.

"I see," he said as he pulled his hand away, "You aren't physically sick, so I think you may be right."

The sandy haired medic leaned back and looked at his two students, "I sent a report back to Suna yesterday and just received a reply." He closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath before looking at them seriously, "The Kazekage wants us to eliminate the threat, then return home."

Minoko and Gaara both froze, "Eliminate?" they whispered.

"Yes," Yashamaru stated plainly, his discomfort hidden behind his professional demeanor, "He wants you to experience your first kill in a controlled environment Minoko. And Gaara, he wants to see if you can show restraint."

Both children cringed and glanced at each other. Minoko's light tan complexion paled drastically while Gaara bit his lip uneasily. Minoko knew that Gaara occasionally killed people in Suna. Usually it was when she wasn't there and they attacked him. Luckily she wasn't around when that happened like she had been that one time, but Gaara really didn't want her to see him kill someone. On the other hand, Minoko was just worried about killing for the first time. She didn't think that this would happen for several more years. She gulped and shakily reached out to squeeze Gaara's hand.

Yashamaru took in their reactions and frowned, "Well? What are you waiting for?" he asked sternly, startling them slightly, "Prepare your supplies and be ready to move out. We leave at 3 tomorrow morning." He then turned to put his own gear in order, expecting them to follow.

After another moment of frozen silence, the two children mechanically moved to comply with their orders.

Once packed, Yashamaru turned to his genin, "Get some rest. I'll let you know when we head out."

"Umm…Yashamaru-sensei…."

He turned to the slightly trembling kunoichi and raised a brow.

"Are….are you sure I have to do this?" she asked in a timid voice.

Yashamaru sighed, "You are a genin, Minoko. I have told you before that that means you are no longer children in the eyes of Suna. You are tools used for the betterment of our nation. And shinobi tools are made to kill and protect," he gave her a harsh stare and saw Minoko gulp, "You will do your duty and not ask questions. Is that clear?"

Minoko felt the breath leave her lungs in a rush as she gave a firm nod. She had never been scared of the sandy haired medic before, but now she knew why he was a jonin. The authority came off of him in waves. Despite his rather feminine features, he was terrifying.

Minoko went over to the bed and climbed in, pulling the covers up around her head and tried to close her eyes. She felt Gaara get in beside her and grab her hand. She squeezed lightly again and took comfort in his presence. _Everything will be fine_, she thought.

She wasn't sure if she believed her own reassurances.

**…**

Three in the morning came too soon in her opinion. Somehow she was able to fall asleep for a while after Gaara had taken her hand, but she still felt rather drained.

They all grabbed their gear silently and left the hotel at a brisk run. They entered Kaze no Kuni and arrived at the bandit's campsite after only ten minutes. Minoko felt a lump growing in her throat. They were perched on an outcropping of rocks and looked at the men that were sprawled out around the camp in various states of dress. There were over forty men down there. And she was going to have to help kill them all. She gulped and wiped her suddenly damp hands on her pants.

Looking closely, she thanked kami for the waning crescent moon. It gave just enough light to see by, yet there were enough shadows to hide their presence. There were a few tents that were only halfway set up, but it seemed like the men decided against finishing. They were probably too drunk to put them together and gave up, choosing to use a bedroll or blanket under the open sky instead. There were a few camp fires that were smoldering from the night before and empty bottles strewn about. The occasional snore and snort was heard throughout the area. There didn't seem to be any guards stationed.

In the corner of the camp furthest from her, Minoko could see a box-like structure and strained to see what it was. When her eyes adjusted enough, it took everything in her not to gasp. It was a wooden cage. Inside were half a dozen women that looked a bit battered. Some were awake and staring blankly into the distance.

Minoko suddenly didn't feel so bad about what they were going to do.

At the signal, the three Suna shinobi spread out around the camp, sensei going to the far end where the women were. He would help them while the children picked off the men.

Minoko crept up to the closest passed out man and pulled out a kunai with barely a whisper. Her hand trembled slightly, but she willed it to stop and focused on the man before her. He was really ugly. Gaunt features, missing or yellowed teeth, clothes that looked like they were caked onto him because of the grime built up from lack of washing…

She crouched down next to him and took a deep breath to steady herself, trying not to gag at his stench. She placed her hand over his mouth and slit his throat, making sure to cut the carotid artery, in one swift movement. The kunai slid through his skin like a hot knife through butter. The man's eyes opened briefly in panic as his hands came up to grasp his bloodied throat, no noise escaping him as she held him down with all of her weight as best as she could. He stopped moving seconds later, his glassy eyes staring forward vacantly.

Minoko let out a shaky breath that she didn't realize she had been holding. Her stomach churned and she could feel bile trying to make it's way up her throat. She closed her eyes and swallowed a couple times. One down. She opened her eyes and looked across the clearing to Gaara, making sure not to look at the dead man in front of her. Gaara was slowly gathering his sand around the men, doing his best not to wake them. She could see three cocoons already, only the faces left uncovered. He would probably try to crush them all at once to limit the noise and effort. She flinched as she tried not to think about it too much.

Suppressing a shudder, Minoko moved onto the next man. Then the next. Then the next. She stopped thinking and just moved robotically, systematically.

She was about to slit the throat of the thirteenth man when he suddenly gripped her wrist, his eyes flashing open to glare into hers. Terror filled her when he roared and moved to stab her with her own blade.

Minoko moved instinctively, her months of training kicking in, and twisted her body in a way that forced the man to release his grip on her. She jumped back a bit and looked at the burly man in front of her. Dark tan skin, square jawline, slightly curly dark brown hair, and a rather brawny build that towered over her. She was in trouble.

The commotion caused the remaining men to wake up. She vaguely heard Gaara crush however many men he had taken captive before those remaining could do anything about it.

"You bitch," the bandit in front of her growled when he got his bearings enough to look around, "What the hell have you done!?" He lunged at her in a practiced move, more grace in his step than his bulk would have hinted at. He must have been one of the Academy drop-outs in the group. Just her luck.

The raven haired girl pivoted around his figure and ducked his kick with ease. It was obvious he wasn't used to fighting someone her size. She barely came up to his mid-thigh. She created some distance between them, then ran through a string of seals and slammed her hand into the ground, "Doton: Doryuheki!"

Instead of an earth wall, a small bump appeared on the ground in front of the hulking figure. Thanks to the shadows, it was barely perceivable in the dim light. Not aware of his surroundings and thinking that her jutsu failed, he smirked and moved to charge her. He missed the bit of raised earth near his feet and stumbled over the mound. This gave Minoko enough time to run up and swipe at his legs with another kunai. She barely nicked the femoral artery in his left leg, but it would be enough.

One thing about being as small as she was, she needed to learn how to fell opponents several times her size efficiently. This led her to learning all about the major arteries and pressure points in the human body. She would never be a medic, but learning anatomy was always a good idea for those in her field.

She didn't notice the bandit swing his fist in a weighted backhand in retaliation until she felt pain blossom across her face. The hit sent her rolling several feet away. She was seeing stars and felt a bit of blood fall from her right temple. She gripped her head briefly before her other senses kicked in and she rolled out of the way of a foot crashing down where she had just been.

The bandit obviously didn't realize that he was basically a walking dead man and continued to attack her. Minoko weaved and dodged, knowing that she just had to outlast him. She briefly glanced at the rivulet of blood steadily flowing down the man's leg and quickly sidestepped. Her head throbbed as she ducked the wild punch. His movements were growing more sluggish and sporadic until he finally fell to his knees breathing heavily. His eyes were unfocused for another moment before he finally fell unconscious due to blood loss, falling face first into the dirt. Breathing heavily, she cautiously walked over and slit his throat just to be sure he'd stay down.

When she looked up again, she saw that Gaara had finished off the remaining bandits while she had been preoccupied by her opponent. The sun was just starting to rise, causing the clearing to be illuminated by the morning light.

Minoko saw red. Blood was everywhere. Soaking the ground, the corpses, her clothes and hands.

She turned and threw up. Whether it was from the sight of all the gore, the concussion that she probably had, or some combination of the two, she didn't know. She vomited again and again, barely feeling the small hand running soothing circles into her back as her head pounded in time with her retching. When she finally calmed down several minutes later after dry heaving for a while, she turned and smiled weakly at Gaara. He gave a small smile back. They did it. They finished the mission and it didn't seem like they were hurt much at all. She could feel a bruise forming around her wrist from where the man grabbed her and the pulsing ache in her skull, but that was it.

She looked over to see Yashamaru-sensei leaning over a body to inspect it. Minoko didn't see the girls anywhere and assumed that he healed them enough to send back to their town. He had mentioned at one point that they weren't citizens of Kaze, so they weren't Suna's concern. Minoko didn't really agree with that thought process, but at least he healed them enough so that they could get home. She hoped.

Sensei moved onto the next body, turning it over, only to let it fall back to the ground with a thud and move to the next. After a moment he straightened with a sigh, "Nice job you two. You executed the plan very well," he ran a frustrated hand through his hair, "The only problem is that the chunin that was the supposed leader isn't here. He must have gone out for something last night."

Minoko slumped down a bit. What were they going to do now!? She was exhausted; physical and emotionally. She barely slept over the last several days, she just made her first kill, and she had been in a fight to the death with a much, much larger enemy. She just wanted to go home.

Gaara patted her shoulder and walked over to inspect the bodies with his uncle one more time to double check, telling Minoko to just rest for a while.

Taking his advice, Minoko walked over to the outcropping of rocks and sat down on one of the lower ones, her head still spinning a bit. She'd have to ask Yashamaru-sensei to check it when he was finished.

She turned her face away from the bodies, still feeling a bit sick, when she froze. Now that the sun was coming up, she could clearly see the various rock formations surrounding the campsite. Most were simple…normal. But the one that she was staring at currently had a very unusual shape; narrow at the bottom, almost to a point, and wider as it went up. Very unusual…and very familiar.

Her blood froze in her veins moments before she heard Gaara screaming her name and felt a searing pain in her chest.

**A/N: I know, I'm horrible…See you next chapter! Please review!**

**Ishigakure: Hidden Stone Village (Not to be confused with Iwa: Hidden Rock Village)**

**Ishi no Kuni: Land of Stone**

**Kaze no Kuni: Land of Wind**

**Tsuchi no Kuni: Land of Earth**

**Doton: Doryuheki: Earth Style: Mud Wall**


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Shout out**** to pigs103. Thank you for the review.**

**Chapter 12**

Minoko stared straight ahead on in shock as searing pain pierced her chest. She watched as Gaara looked at her in horror, screaming her name in a desperate cry.

Minoko looked down and saw the tip of a katana poking through her chest, blood slowly pooling at her feet. It was just like her dream bubble. She shouldn't have shrugged it off. She should have said something. Now, it was probably too late.

Looking back up at Gaara, she smiled weakly, feeling blood leak out of the corner of her mouth. "I'm sorry," she croaked out, already feeling her consciousness start to leave her. She saw his heartbroken face morph into one of pure rage, his eyes turning a haunting yellow.

Her vision became fuzzy and it was getting harder and harder to focus. She felt the blade being pulled back out and her body swayed a bit with the motion. The last thing she saw was Yashamaru-sensei running towards her as Gaara used his sand to slam her assailant, the missing chunin, into the strange rock formation and causing it to topple down.

She fell forward and her world went black.

**…**

Gaara looked down at the stuffed bear in his hands. It was his birthday present. The first one he ever got. And he couldn't even thank his best friend for it. They came home from the 'successful' mission four days ago, Yashamaru-oji-san carrying the limp body of the one person that he could confide in. He glanced at the note attached to the burgundy bow of the bear. He had memorized it after rereading it over and over again.

_Happy birthday Gaara! I hope you like this bear. He matches mine! His name is Cinnamon because of his brown color. I think he and Sugar will be best friends just like us. Now that you have him, you can tell him all of your secrets whenever I'm not there. I hope you like him! Love you bunches and bunches! –Minoko_

A tear fell down his cheek unnoticed. Four days. It had been four days since the medical personnel said he couldn't see her anymore. Four days since he broke the news to Taru-san…Four days since he failed her.

Why couldn't he have moved a little faster? Or just stayed next to her instead of going to look at the bodies with his uncle? She needed him, and he wasn't there in time. Gaara sniffed as more tears fell.

He looked at the bear again and traced its simple features. She said that he could talk to Cinnamon when he couldn't talk to her…but he wished it was her instead.

Gaara felt Mother thrashing around as his turbulent feelings started to spike. He already killed the one that stabbed her, crushed him limb by limb until his blood soaked his sand and dyed the earth red. But it wasn't enough. He needed more. More blood, more screaming and begging! More-

_No!_ he thought, pushing the whisperings of Mother back, _she wouldn't want to see me like that._ He took a deep breath and the sand that had begun to whip around him settled on the ground. Mother grumbled in protest.

He took another breath. They said he could see her today. He needed to calm down. He wiped the tears from his face and grabbed Cinnamon in a hug as he walked out of the house, not even acknowledging his uncle's greeting. He walked to the hospital in a daze, ignoring the looks of disgust and fear with practiced ease. He strode through the sliding glass doors and went down the hallway without even glancing at the check in counter. He knew where to go. It was the only room he ever needed to go to in this place.

He looked up at the sign saying 'Morgue'. His heart beat quickened and he had to blink rapidly to hold back more tears. Gaara pushed open the door and walked through, instantly noticing the pallid figure laying unnaturally still under a thin white sheet in the cold room. He pushed a stool over and sat by the bed after placing Cinnamon on the too-firm surface near her head. He took Minoko's cold hand in his and rubbed it in a futile attempt to make it warm again. Her features were blank, almost like she was just sleeping. Her lips a light blue, her skin cold and pale… He never wanted to see her like this.

"I promised to protect you," he said in a cracking voice, "I promised." He laid his head against the mattress as he clutched her hand and cried.

**A/N: The End? Find out next week! Please review.**


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**A big thanks to pigs103 and Ark****haggelos**** for the reviews! Hopefully you like this one better :)**

**Chapter 13**

Her eyes felt unnaturally heavy as she came out of a haze. At first, she thought that she was trapped in the darkness, a prisoner to the bleakness of the void. After some time, she started to regain some sensation. She felt…cold? Though sometimes there would be a moment of comforting heat originating from her right hand. She mentally clutched onto that warmth. It was so different from the never-ending cold blackness.

Eventually she could hear snatches of unintelligible conversation floating around her. Different tones and pitches meant that they were different people. Who were they? She wanted to know. She tried to force her eyes open again, but they were stubbornly resisting her command. She knew that she was more stubborn though, so she kept trying.

She had no idea how much time had passed before she felt the warmth again. A moment later it left and she desperately wanted to yell in protest. Before she knew it, she felt something settle over her that chased the cold away a bit and the warmth returned to her hand. It gave her that one, last push she needed to finally open her eyes. She was blinded almost instantly and closed them again. She heard an intake of breath beside her and steeled herself before blinking her eyes open again. Everything came into focus slowly.

The first thing she noticed was that cold that seemed to seep into her very being was part of reality, not just the void. The next thing she noticed was the light grey ceiling, which was really unusual…most walls and ceilings in Suna were tan. She turned her head a bit and saw a red, cream, and teal blob. Blinking a few more times, she started to see the blob become her closest friend. She smiled.

"Hi," she croaked out, her throat scratchy and dry from disuse.

Tears ran down his cheeks and she frowned. That's not right. He's not supposed to cry. Crying is bad. She put all her effort into raising her hand to wipe the tears away, her hand kind of flopping onto his cheek in a light smack instead as she dragged it downwards.

That seemed to snap him out of his daze as he blinked and let out a small cry of joy, standing on his stool and climbing onto the bed to hug her.

"I thought I lost you," he said into her shoulder.

She lightly hugged him back and scrunched her eyebrows together in thought, trying to remember what happened. The slight pain on her back and chest made it all come back to her in a rush and the air left her lungs, "I'm sorry."

Gaara pulled away and looked at her, "That's what you said before you passed out, too. Why are you sorry? It wasn't your fault."

Minoko scratched her cheek a bit in guilt, "It…it kind of was."

Gaara stiffened a bit, his eyes narrowing in suspicion, "What do you mean?"

"Umm…you know…how I had a dream bubble before we left? And how I said it probably wouldn't happen for a while?"

Gaara's eyes hardened, "Yeeees."

"Well, I kinda…sorta…saw the moment when the sword was sticking out of my chest," she said, her voice growing softer as she spoke while his face got angrier.

"You _what_!?" he asked, voice low and incredulous.

She cringed and looked away.

"You mean to tell me that you _knew_ that you were going to be stabbed and you didn't do _anything_ _about it_!?"

"I didn't want you to worry!" she said, trying to defend herself. She instantly knew she said the wrong thing when more tears started to fall while his face turned red in anger and eyes flashing briefly to gold.

"You didn't want me to worry? What do you think I was doing when you fell into a coma for two weeks!?"

She shrank back into her pillow and tried to bury herself under her two thin blankets, "I'm sorry," she squeaked out again.

Gaara looked at her as she tried to imitate a turtle and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm himself down. After a moment of silence, he opened his eyes and deflated a bit. She peeked out from under the covers and he looked her in the eyes, "It's…it's fine….Just…don't do that again," he whispered his plea, "I felt so useless. I couldn't protect you, couldn't help you. If it wasn't for Yashamaru-oji-san, you would've died."

She sat up, careful of her still-healing injuries, and hugged him as tightly as she could. He just let it happen and rested his forehead on her left shoulder.

A few minutes later, Minoko opened her eyes and peered over his shoulder, finally taking notice of her surroundings, "Umm…Gaara?"

She heard a muffled sound of acknowledgement and continued hesitantly, "I know you said I was close to dying and all…but why are we in the morgue?"

Gaara stiffened and pulled back a bit, looking sheepish as he avoided eye contact, "That's…probably my fault. This is the only room I'm allowed in, so the doctors moved you here when I insisted on visiting."

Minoko smacked her face with her palm and shook her head, "Of course."

Before the conversation could continue, they heard the door to the room open and turned to see Taru as he dropped a bouquet of desert roses on the ground, "Minoko?" he whispered in hopeful disbelief.

"Hi daddy," she said with a smile.

The next several minutes were filled with more tears, hugs, and relieved laughter.

**…**

Yashamaru bowed to his leader later that day, "She woke up."

"Good," the Kazekage stated, not even looking up from his paperwork, "It was unfortunate that she fell into a coma in the first place."

"Indeed," Yashamaru said blankly, masking any attachments he may have toward the young girl, "Shinji deviated from his instructions."

"No matter," the leader of Suna stated as he signed off on the document, "It's no wonder that he didn't make it past chunin. He knew he wasn't supposed to target the girl. His own incompetence got him killed." He looked up and set hard eyes on his most loyal subordinate, "Next time, there won't be a mistake. I have plans for that child the boy has taken a liking to. Make sure to train her well."

"Yes, Kazekage-sama."

**A/N: She lives! Let me know what you think by leaving a review!**

**On another note, the next update will be in two weeks. Work is getting a bit crazy thanks to Covid-19 so I don't have as much time to write. Sorry...At least I didn't leave you on too much of a cliffhanger this time ;D**


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 14**

Life after that went on as usual. It took another three days before Yashamaru discharged Minoko from the hospital. She was just glad to feel the sun on her face again. Seriously, that room was _way _too cold! She was lucky that Gaara had been able to sneak her a second blanket before she woke up, or she would have turned into a popsicle.

Minoko ended up with two permanent scars; one on her back and one on her front. The katana entered her from the back at a steep angle a couple inches below her right shoulder, close to where the shoulder blade started. The exit wound came out just below her sternum. It pierced her right lung clean through, which was why blood had started leaking from her mouth and why she was so close to dying. She was lucky that the blade hadn't nicked any major arteries as well.

Minoko was disappointed that her mom never came to visit her. Her dad said that he had sent a message as soon as he found out that she was in the hospital, but he never received a response. Minoko was finally realizing that she really wasn't coming back.

Sensei eased her back into training for about two weeks with Gaara helping any chance he got before the three of them started to take missions again. Her best friend could usually be found hovering around her to make sure she didn't over do it.

She wasn't really surprised to see that they were started off with C-ranks again right off the bat. Luckily they were all fairly standard and nothing strange or unexpected occurred. They were basically glorified chores.

Between missions, Yashamaru-sensei slowly increased the amount of training for her each day. After three months, she was in peak condition, even more so than she was before she fell into a coma. In addition to physical conditioning, she learned more about sensing other's chakra, camouflage, hiding in plain sight, and information gathering. This way she would be better prepared for situations like that disastrous one in Ishi. On top of that, sensei taught her another earth style jutsu: Doton: Doryuso. This way, she would have an offensive and defensive jutsu in her arsenal.

Every time they trained or left the village for a mission, sensei would have her create a new persona. He had noticed that she had been uncomfortable when she was acting in Ishi, so he wanted her to get used to behaving differently. He had her create names, background information, and mannerisms for each persona. If she deviated from character, sensei would wack her and have her try again until she got it right. It took a while, but she could finally sink into a new personality with only a little trouble now and then. Such as her breaking character to tackle Gaara when he started laughing at her in retaliation. Just because she had to act like a timid girly-girl did _not_ mean that she couldn't get him back for being a jerk. The following smack to the back of her head was totally worth it.

During that timeframe, Minoko had her fifth birthday as well. Gaara came over to her house for the day to celebrate. Taru attempted to make a cake for her, but she ended up having to step in to save it when he almost used salt instead of sugar. Minoko insisted that the small party was to celebrate both her and Gaara becoming five since she missed his birthday while she was in the hospital.

Gaara gave her a small potted cactus and explained how she was supposed to take care of it. He made sure to give her one of the ones that stayed relatively small and flowered frequently. She smiled brightly when he brought it out and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, causing his face to practically match his hair.

It had now been five months since she had been released from the hospital and she was bored! Gaara had gone out into the desert to gather more cacti for his greenhouse. He had to travel two days to the far west border of Kaze in order to acquire a rare species that only bloomed once every ten years. Yashamaru-sensei insisted on going with him to make sure nothing happened. Gaara stubbornly insisted that she stay behind to rest, even though she had fully recovered from her ordeal a couple months ago. He was just being paranoid, but it was kind of sweet, too. However, this also meant that Minoko was left all alone!

Her dad was currently at work. He was a woodworker and could carve just about anything in under an hour. When they came to Suna about a year and a half ago and showed off his skills, the puppetry division snatched him up quickly despite him being a civilian.

She was sitting on the couch in her living room, trying to get through some of the study materials that sensei had left for her, but her mind kept wandering for some reason. She gave up concentrating with a groan and flopped down on her back, sinking into the well-worn cushions. Why couldn't something exciting happen?

Not a moment later, there was a knock at her door. She picked her head up to stare at the door when a second knock came. She sighed and got up to answer.

Minoko padded over to the door and opened it, revealing an ANBU. He was dressed in traditional Suna ANBU attire, covered head to toe. His face was covered by a piece of cloth that attached to the turban-like head-dressing and only his dark brown eyes showed.

"Kai Minoko?" he asked in a gravelly voice.

"Yes."

"The Kazekage requests your presence immediately."

She nodded, "I'll head over as soon as I change," she said, gesturing to her pajamas. Sure it was after noon, but they were comfy and she didn't have to be anywhere that day.

The man nodded briskly, then disappeared in a shunshin.

She sighed and turned to her room to change clothes, "I just had to jinx myself, didn't I?"

**…**

Ten minutes later, Minoko was standing alone in front of the Kazekage, Rasa. He was still as intimidating as the first time they met and she couldn't help but feel anxious as he sized her up from behind his desk. She kept still with her eyes lowered in respect as she waited for him to speak.

"Yashamaru has told me a good deal about you, Kai Minoko," he said.

She didn't respond, but raised her head up slightly so that she was looking at the top of his desk.

"I must say that I'm impressed with the progress that you've made," he continued, "Not many children have the drive that you do, don't you think?"

"Sir," she started, answering carefully, "I am a genin. It is my duty to put in every effort that I can."

Rasa hummed, "Well said." He stood from his chair and walked to the window, hands clasped behind his back. Minoko continued to look at the desk and saw him move from the corner of her eye. He looked back to her, "I believe that you could qualify for a promotion soon."

Minoko's eyes widened a bit. A promotion? She was only five and she was going to be a chunin?

"Of course," the Kazekage said, breaking her out of her momentary lapse in attentiveness, "You would need to prove yourself capable of completing missions to a certain standard. Normally, this would take place at the Chunin Exams that are held bi-yearly, but as you don't have a full team, you are automatically barred from them."

He walked to stand in front of her and she raised her head enough to look at his chest.

"This leaves me in an odd predicament. It would be a waste to not utilize your talents, and that is what would happen if you were to remain a genin. I believe that with the right training, you could complete certain B or A rank missions. Missions that you are not permitted to take part in at you current rank."

He moved his hand to her chin and raised her face to meet his gaze. Minoko felt an uneasy chill go through her body at his touch.

"I have a proposition for you," he said, keeping a hold of her chin, "There is a solo infiltration mission to Kirigakure that needs to be completed soon. It could last several months. You would be required to discretely send reports to update me about the current situation and gather as much information as you can about the current political climate. If you complete this mission successfully and to my standards, you will receive a field promotion to chunin. Do you accept?"

Minoko knew that her eyes were wide as she processed the information. A solo mission? That means no Yashamaru-sensei. No Gaara. Could she really do this?

She glanced into the unrelenting eyes of her leader. _I don't think that I actually have a choice_, she thought.

"I accept this mission, Kazekage-sama. When do I leave?"

He finally released his hold on her chin and gave a chilling smile, "Good. You leave at dawn in three days. I expect weekly reports, so I will have one of my jonin have you sign a contract and teach you how to summon. You are to learn this jutsu before you leave. Dismissed."

Minoko bowed deeply and took her leave. When the office door closed behind her, she started to tremble. What in the world did she just get herself in to?

**A/N: I'm back! How does she keep getting into these situations? Until next time! Please leave a review :D**

**Doton: Doryuso: Earth Style: Falling Earth Spears**

**Kirigakure: Hidden Mist Village**


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Shout out to BabiBunchez! Thank you for the review! I always appreciate the feedback. Here's a slightly longer chapter. Enjoy and stay safe!**

**Chapter 15**

Minoko wiped the sweat forming on her forehead and took a long drink out of her canteen. She had been traveling for a week and was just now reaching the edges of Hi no Kuni. It was early July so it was starting to get pretty hot. Sure she was from the desert, but that was a dry heat. She could handle that. What she could _not_ handle was feeling like she was suffocating on her own sweat! She never realized that the forests in the Land of Fire were so humid. She was sweating as much as she would in the desert. However, unlike the scorching sands, the muggy death trap she was currently in didn't let the sweat on her skin dry. It stuck to her in the most uncomfortable way and wouldn't evaporate. That defeated the whole purpose of sweat! It was supposed to dry in order to cool you off. Not try to drown you while you're running!

Minoko sighed as she let her head gently thump against the tree trunk she was leaning against. She should make it to the port town that would take her to Kiri by the end of the day. Then she could finally leave this miserable country and start her mission.

Her mission. By herself. Alone.

She thumped her head against the bark a few extra times for good measure. How in the world was she going to do this without Yashamaru-sensei or Gaara? She'd never been alone this long before. Sure, she could survive on her own better than almost any other five-year-old, but she had never led a mission before. And her very first time doing so was as a solo mission in a country on the opposite side of the elemental nations! Kirigakure, also known as the Bloody Mist. Not exactly a name that promotes wellness and peace. _And _she was going there _by herself_ to gather intel on the political climate.

She wiped another bead of sweat away and sighed again. _Not even moving and I'm still sweating._ She heaved herself up with a groan of frustration and stretched before hooking her canteen back onto her belt. If she was going to feel yucky either way, she might as well keep running. She wanted to get on the boat as soon as possible. There was no way it could be worse than this place.

**...**

Back in Suna, Gaara was making a very valiant effort not to pull his own hair out. He was _not_ having a good day. Oh, he was able to find what he was looking for in the desert. But not when he came home.

Minoko was gone.

He didn't bring her with him so that she could rest. Instead, he finds out from the guards that she was sent on a mission to who-knows-where and it was supposed to last for over a month!

That was the exact opposite of resting!

He checked up on Taru-san after he got back but found him passed out on the couch. Gaara covered him with a blanket and was about to leave when he found a note addressed to him on the kitchen table from his headache-inducing best friend. It was short. Basically just telling him that she was leaving on a mission, which he already knew, and that she wished that he could have gone with her. She promised that she would be careful and apologized, saying that she wouldn't be able to contact him while she was away. What made his anxiety level rise was the small detail stating that she would be going by herself.

The sand at his feet swirled in reaction to his agitation. When it nearly knocked over a vase, Gaara snapped out of his thoughts and regained control of the destructive grains.

He ran a hand roughly through his hair again in frustration. He knew that she was feeling better, but that didn't stop him from worrying. She was going to get herself hurt again. And he and Yashamaru-oji-san weren't going to be there. Some sand at his feet shifted in a lazy circle again as his thoughts raced. Noticing the moving grains, he stopped them once more and proceeded to rub his temples. Yep, there was the headache.

This was going to be a long month.

**…**

It was worse. It was _so_ much worse!

Minoko leaned over the railing of the ship, her feet not even touching the ground, as she vomited her breakfast up.

She had made it to the port town the previous night. She was able to book a last minute ticket on a ship after convincing the captain that she was going to Kiri to look for her papa after her mama died. She had her forehead protector stashed away in a scroll at the bottom of her bag and was wearing a red shirt with black overalls. The legs of the overalls were cut to just above the knees and had flowers and lady bugs sewn on the pockets. Her wavy black hair was tied up in pigtails with flowing crimson ribbons with black polka dots. She looked the picture of innocence.

The captain was hesitant at first. She was just a kid and he didn't want to be responsible for her. She begged and had a few tears drop as she offered to pay and stay out of the way. It was easy to get tears to form. She just had to think of her own mommy leaving.

Somehow he caved. She had to bunk in an overly crowded common room in the hull of the boat since the passenger cabins were all full, but the other single passengers all seemed pretty nice so far. They didn't bother her and she didn't bother them.

This place was still hell.

The boat rocked and swayed with the waves. Pitching forwards and back, side to side, never staying still for even a moment. The only positive was the constant cool breeze.

It barely helped.

Needless to say, she wanted to get back on dry land as soon as possible. If she never had to board another boat in her life, she would be perfectly content. She hated boats.

Jovial laughter was heard behind her, but she wasn't about to move away from the safety of the railing to find out who it was.

"Don't have yer sea legs yet, do ya?" came the gruff yet kind voice. She turned her head slightly to see a burly older man lean his slightly muscled forearms on top of the rail next to her. He looked to be in his fifties with dark hair streaked with grey. Hazel eyes danced in mirth as he watched her pathetically shake her head at his question. "Don't cha worry about it too much girly. You'll be getting the hang of it soon."

"You sure mister?" she croaked out in a soft voice, grimacing at the taste of bile in her mouth, "I might die first."

A bellowing laugh escaped from him, seeming to start from the bottom of his round belly and bursting forth from his mouth with abandon, "Don't be dying on us now child. Ya needed ta find yer pa, didn't cha?"

Her stomach seemed to settle enough for her to hop down from the top of the railing. "Yeah, mama said that he was a shi…shi-no-bi," she made her face look like she was concentrating hard on pronouncing the word correctly, "He can use magic!" she said, her eyes shining in wonder.

"Can he now?" he smiled indulgently, "You'll have ta ask 'im ta teach ya when ya find 'im."

She nodded her head enthusiastically, then wobbled unsteadily and clutched her stomach. She shouldn't have done that. She barely made it back to the top of the rails before her stomach turned traitor on her again, the sailor beside her chuckled as he turned to go do his job. This was going to be a long ride.

**…**

Minoko had to stop herself from kissing the salt-worn planks of the dock when she finally stepped off of the torture device two days later. She swayed at first, trying to find her balance once the constant motions of the boat stopped and became a solid surface. While she would miss the nice sailors, she dreaded the thought of going back onto another boat. She stopped herself from thinking about the return trip.

"Take care o' yerself girly!"

She smiled and waved to the large man before turning and running at a civilian pace down to shore. She was finally in Mizu no Kuni. It would normally take at least half a day of traveling to get to Kiri from here, but since she was acting as a civilian, she'd have to go at a slower pace. It would probably be another two days before she got there if there were no complications.

She slowed to a walk and wandered through the port town, eyes wide in feigned wonder. Well, mostly feigned. A part of her _was_ amazed at the different structures that lined the streets and the amount of fish that was available to purchase. Every other shop seemed to have some kind of seafood on display. It really shouldn't be a surprise considering where she was, but it was still quite a change from what she was used to.

It wasn't even mid-day yet, so she decided to go to the next town before nightfall. According to a friendly local fisherman, if she left now, she could get there in about five hours.

After walking for an hour she stopped and looked around. There weren't any people on the road and she couldn't sense any presences nearby either. She quickly got off the main road and hid in a grove of sickly looking, yet tightly packed, trees. Crouching down, she pulled her pack off in a swift motion and opened the flap. She quickly took out a scroll, brush, and an ink well. She concisely wrote a report for the Kazekage stating that she made it into the country with no issues and was on her way to the village. She would write again in a week to update him on what she learned.

She put the ink and brush away, then gently blew on the pages to help the ink dry faster. It wasn't as hot here as it was in Hi no Kuni, but it was just as humid, making it hard for the ink to dry quickly. She reread her report, checking for any errors. Nodding in satisfaction, she rolled it up and sealed it. Minoko bit her thumb to draw blood and carefully ran through a sequence of hand seals before slamming her hand onto the ground, "Kuchiyose no jutsu!" She wobbled a bit when felt a significant drain on her chakra reserves as a small puff of smoke cleared to reveal a light tan colored bearded dragon about the size of her arm. A cylindrical tube was attached across its back with a thick leather sash. Minoko steadied herself and sat cross legged in front of the calm lizard in front of her.

"Minoko-san," came a whispery voice, "What can I do for you?"

"Shinji-kun," she greeted the young reptile with a small bow, "I have a report that needs to be delivered to the Kazekage."

"Of course," he nodded, "It will be in his hands by the end of the day."

"Thank you Shinji-kun," she said with a smile.

Shinji was the first desert lizard that she summoned that could physically help her in delivering messages. Her actual first attempts were mere hatchlings. It took her a day and a half to finally summon Shinji. By that point in time, she was out of chakra and her temporary sensei was out of patience. She was lucky that Shinji was kind and docile like the rest of his kind. If she had summoned a Gila monster or a komodo dragon instead, she would probably have been attacked first. She would have to try to work with them in the future and earn their respect so that they could help with battles. But for now, summoning a bearded dragon was perfect for her needs.

She opened the tube and inserted the scroll, making sure it was secure. The moment the tube was closed, the bearded dragon bobbed it's head in her direction and popped out of existence without another word.

Minoko stood and dusted off her backside. She heaved her backpack back onto her shoulders and did a quick scan of the area before jogging back over to the road. A fine mist swirled along the dirt path as she walked. She pulled out some onigiri to snack on as she walked along. Every-so-often she would kick a pebble into the mist, skip, or softly hum a cheerful tune like a normal five-year-old. She might think that she was alone, but she was only a genin. It was better to act like the child she was while walking in order to keep her cover in place. She made sure to discretely scan the area as she went, her senses on full alert.

Her nerves were strung tight by the time she made it to the small town three and a half hours later, but there had been no incident while she traveled. There were no gates or guards or anything, so she simply walked down the path into the main streets of town. It was surprisingly quiet. It was barely five in the afternoon, yet there were only a few people walking hurriedly down the street. They seemed as jumpy as she was, constantly looking over their shoulders.

Minoko felt a small, familiar prickle in the back of her head and went to sit on the street corner. She lowered her head like she was just resting and closed her eyes after double checking her surroundings. When it was clear, she let the dream bubble flow over her. It was short and simple; just telling her where to find shelter. She got up a moment later and walked through the small town, confidently turning a couple corners and entering a building with a plain sign saying "Inn" on it.

When she came into the lobby an old woman behind the front counter looked up from her knitting in shock, "Oh! Hello dear, where are your parents?"

Minoko acted shyly, scuffing her foot against the ground as her hands went behind her back, head turned down slightly, "Mama…mama died. I'm trying to find papa. Mama said papa was in Kiri."

The woman blinked, "So you're here alone?"

Minoko nodded, "But I have some money," she was quick to reassure, "Can I stay here tonight? I'm really sleepy and I walked a really long time."

"I won't turn away business. Kami knows I don't have enough as it is."

Encouraged, Minoko stepped closer to the desk, her eyes barely able to peer over the top, "Why don't you have bu-si-ness? This place looks nice."

The woman smiled tiredly and shrugged, "With the war going on, not many people are traveling nowadays."

The crimson-eyed girl's eyes widened, "War?" she asked in a hushed tone.

The woman nodded, "Nothing official, mostly just hearsay, but something happened in the shinobi village. Not real sure what, everyone is keeping pretty hush-hush, but people are fighting something fierce. You should reconsider traveling that way. I'm sure your mama would prefer to have you safe."

Minoko put on a stubborn front and crossed her arms, "Imma find papa. We're gonna be a family. You can't stop me."

The old lady raised her hands in surrender, "Just a suggestion. Now, what's your name dear?"

"Kimi! Tanaka Kimi!" she chirped with a grin.

"Ok, Kimi-chan. I'm Watanabe Miyu, the owner of this inn. You can have room 303. It's on the third floor, second door on the left. Have you had supper?"

The young girl shook her head, "No Watanabe-obaa-san."

Miyu's face softened into a small smile, the wrinkles in the corners of her eyes becoming more prominent, "Then I insist that you eat with me."

Minoko bowed and took the keys from the woman, promising to come back down in an hour to eat. She ran up the stairs and quickly found her room. After entering and searching the room for anything suspicious, she dumped her bag on the ground and landed face first on the bed with a plop.

There was a war. _Of course_ there was a war. No wonder the Kazekage wanted to know about the political climate.

For probably the hundredth time since receiving her mission, Minoko wondered just what she had gotten herself into.

**A/N: Now to see how Minoko handles Kiri! Please leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 16**

It had been two days since she left Miyu-obaa-san's inn. The old woman had been very kind to her and had tried to get her to stay or change her mind about going to find her papa, but Minoko simply acted like a stubborn, petulant child that wouldn't be swayed from her decision. The woman had sighed each time in resignation and gave her a sad smile. Before she left, Miyu made sure to give her some food for the road and gave her a letter to deliver to an inn inside of Kiri. Apparently, a cousin of hers worked as an innkeeper as well in the shinobi village. Minoko gladly accepted the food and promised to find the inn as soon as she arrived to her destination.

Which she was currently standing in front of.

Minoko looked up at the looming gate of Kirigakure with a slight hint of trepidation. The stone archway had wisps of mist curling gently around it and two sentries that, from a distance, looked anything _but_ gentle guarded the opening. Gulping slightly, Minoko took a hesitant step toward the gate.

The shinobi guards had been watching her growing nerves with a hint of amusement. One was built with lean muscles and a willowy frame, his silvery-blue hair tied in a bun at the back of his head. His sharp-toothed smirk seemed to be good natured and his indigo colored eyes were kinder than she had initially expected.

His partner was at least a full head taller than him with more pronounced muscles and a light tan. He was built more like a brawler where the first man seemed to be built more for speed and flexibility. The taller man had short, light auburn hair that formed an almost natural mohawk at the top of his head. His dark grey eyes flicked over to his partner and he lightly jabbed an elbow into his side.

"Ow! Fuck, Suji, that hurt," said the silver haired man in a slightly raised whisper as he rubbed his abused ribs.

"Then maybe you should take your duty more seriously if you don't want me to hit you, Yanagi," came the gruff reply.

"It's just a kid, not like we couldn't take her. Besides, she kinda cute. Reminds me of my baby sister."

"Need I remind you of what your 'cute baby sister' did to me with that squirrel that one time?"

A shiver visibly shook Yanagi's body, "Good point. Cute baby sister equals evil when given access to equally cute little mammals. You did deserve it from what I can recall, though."

Suji gave a deadpanned stare at his partner, "No one deserves that. All I did was call her tiny."

"And she proved to you that that wouldn't stop her from exacting sweet revenge," Yanagi stated in a pleasant tone, nodding proudly.

"Ano…" Minoko stated after looking back and forth between the two seemingly good friends. They stopped their mild argument and glanced down at the raven-haired girl. It looked like they had forgotten why they initially started the conversation because they seemed surprised to see her still standing in front of them, gently wringing her hands together. "Can I go in?" she asked in a small voice, sneaking a shy peek at them through her lashes as she shifted from foot to foot nervously.

"That depends," said Yanagi with an all-too mischievous smirk, "You got any tiny animals stashed in your pack that would possibly terrorize the general population and scar a chunin for life?" His quip earned him another sharp jab from his partner and a giggle from the child.

"No, I got some onigiri though!" she chirped. She gave a tiny smile to the slim man, "Do you want one?"

Suji rolled his eyes, "We're not taking your food, but we do need to search you and your bag before you can enter."

Minoko nodded rapidly and shucked off her backpack, handing it to the large man. She was internally pleased that she decided to travel without any weapons.

As he started to rifle through it, Yanagi ruffled her hair, causing her to give an indignant squeak and try to smooth out her pigtails again. He chuckled and squatted down to her level, "I gotta pat you down, ok?"

He waited for her to give him a slightly suspicious look and nod her head. He searched her quickly, yet thoroughly. When he was satisfied, he gave her tummy a quick tickle, earning him another annoyed squeal. She batted her hands at him clumsily in an effort to get him to back off, which he did with a non-repentant grin.

Suji huffed lightly in amusement and handed her her bag. He waved her over to a small desk on the other side of the gate and opened a log book, "What's your name and reason for coming into Kiri?"

"I'm Tanaka Kimi! I'm looking for Papa. Mama said Papa lived here."

"Uh-huh, and did you leave your ma without telling her you were coming here?" he asked with a conspiratory grin.

Minoko forced her face to turn grim, tears filling her eyes. "Mama's dead," she said in a low whisper, refusing to let the tears fall.

Suji heard her clearly though and nodded, his expression turning solemn. He understood well what it was like losing those close to you, "Sorry kid."

After she sniffled a bit and took a deep breath, she bobbed her head, "S'okay."

Yanagi walked over behind her, "So, who's your pa?"

She wrinkled her brow in confusion and looked over her shoulder, "Papa is Papa," she said with a firm nod.

Suji covered his grin as he looked away and coughed lightly while Yanagi winced slightly at the childish logic, "Uh-huh, but does he have a name? How're you going to find him?"

Realization seemed to dawn on the young girl's face, "Oh! Papa's name is Kosuke. And…and I'll just find him," she said with a huff, folding her arms.

The two men shared a look over her head and shrugged, "Ok, good luck kid."

She gave them a small smile before turning to walk away. She made it about five steps before she froze and looked around. There were several cylindrical buildings that towered above her head connected with stone walkways and staircases that seemed to go on for ages. She glanced down several paths and suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed. She bashfully looked back at the two chunin that were still watching her with poorly concealed amusement.

"Um…do you know where the Boiling River Inn is? Obaa-san said I should go there first."

Yanagi laughed boisterously and walked over, ruffling her hair again, much to her annoyance, "Go down that path," he said, pointing to the left, "It'll split in a few minutes. Go right, take the first set of stairs you see on the left. It'll be at the top on the right."

"Thanks," she said with a light blush. She impulsively hugged his leg and darted off, not looking back as she hurried down the indicated path. Blushing a bit himself, Yanagi went back to his post, having to endure the rest of his shift with his smug best friend teasing him about cradle robbing.

**...**

Gaara sighed in boredom as he laid down on his mostly unused bed. It had been about a week since he came home to find Minoko missing. He didn't really know what to do without her there. She usually chose the activity for the day if they didn't have a mission or training. Sure, he could train by himself or work with his cacti, but he had already done that. Several times. He didn't feel like training anymore and his cacti didn't need a lot of tending to. If he overdid it, he would do more harm than good.

Gaara turned onto his side and stared at the light brown bear sitting next to his pillow. He poked it gently a few times. It flopped onto its side.

Gaara sighed again. He was supposed to talk to Cinnamon if Minoko wasn't there, but that just made him feel silly. He had compromised by holding the bear and carrying it everywhere with him when he wasn't on duty...which lately was all the time. Yashamaru-sensei said that Gaara had a break until his mission partner came back. He didn't really question it.

Gaara had briefly contemplated going to see his siblings. He had met them a few times and they seemed like fun people, but he knew that he wasn't supposed to be around them. Or rather, _they_ were told to stay away from _him_.

Gaara sat against his headboard and picked the bear up, tracing it's features. He wondered what it would be like to have a family that _wasn't_ afraid of him...other than Yashamaru-oji-san. Though, he did sometimes look cautious and wary around him. Oji-san probably thought he hid it well, but Gaara could tell these things.

Maybe it would be like when he was with Minoko? He always felt warm inside when she was around. And his cheeks got red sometimes when she hugged him or kissed him on the cheek. And it wasn't a bad red like a sunburn either. That's like a real family, right?

Then again, family didn't dance. That's what Minoko said. And they promised to dance with each other when they got older.

So, she couldn't be family.

She was better.

Gaara smiled for the first time in a week at that thought and hugged Cinnamon before putting him back on the bed and heading out the door.

He didn't want Cinnamon to see his surprise, no matter how illogical he knew that sounded. He wanted to go look for a present for Minoko when she got back by himself though.

Maybe she would kiss his cheek again.

**A/N: Ah, Minoko, already endearing herself to the locals :) And Gaara is an adorable little chibi!**

**Please review to tell me what you think! See you next week!**


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Chapter 17**

_A few minutes, my butt! _Minoko grumbled internally as she wandered through the streets that dipped, rose, and curved at seemingly random intervals. She followed the directions that the kind guard gave her to the T and still almost managed to get lost!

She wiped a bead of sweat that dripped down her forehead and let out a huff of air. She had been walking for more than a kilometre already and it was almost entirely uphill! She tried to think positively in order to _not_ think about the fact that she could practically _swim_ in the air here.

First, she only had a short ways to go until she reached her final destination...hopefully. Second, she already endured the death trap that people called a boat, so this was nothing! Third, while the air here was definitely more humid than Hi no Kuni, it was at least a few degrees cooler. Plus, with all the mist surrounding the city, she didn't have to feel the constant heat of the sun. Fourth...fourth...?

Ok, so she couldn't think of a fourth reason at the moment, so she kept repeating those three 'positives' in her mind as much as she could while a film of perspiration decided to coat her body uncomfortably.

It didn't work well.

_Where in the world is that inn!? _she thought in frustration. She made sure to let none off her irritation show on her face, keeping the visage of an innocently curious child as she inwardly attempted not to curse. _Just a couple turns, he said. Just up a flight of stairs, he said. He forgot to mention that there were well over two hundred steps!_

Her internal grumbling came to a halt as she final reached the top and took in the busy stone-lined street. The buildings were older, but fairly well-maintained. The people that bustled around seemed to mind their own business and didn't really interact much with one another. In Suna, regular customers would stop to talk and gossip with vendors or catch up with an old friend that they ran into by chance. Here, she couldn't hear anyone talking. Even the vendors were relatively silent instead of calling out to potential customers to buy their wares.

It was kinda creepy.

Minoko took all of this in within a few seconds and quietly took a step forward, trying to regulate her breathing and _not_ look like her lungs were screaming for air. For kami's sake! She was a kunoichi! She should _not_ be struggling for breath after a leisurely one kilometre walk and an extra steep flight of stairs!

She mentally shook herself and looked along the right-hand side of the road for the Boiling River Inn. After a couple minutes, she spotted a door with a wooden sign hanging over it that sported a red, bubbling river with steam rising from it. It kinda reminded her of the lava that she read about one time out of boredom. She sped up a bit and gently pushed open the heavy door. She sighed in relief as the cool air from inside rushed over her.

The inside was decorated in warm colors. Dark wooden floors and furniture were splashed with oranges and reds in the forms of rugs and cushions. The entryway had a small area where guests could remove their shoes and trade them for comfortable slippers. The lobby had a few couches to the left surrounding an unlit fireplace that was probably really cozy in the winter. There was a counter to the right where a middle aged man was standing reading a magazine.

He looked up when he heard the door open and a pleasant smile brightened his features, "Hello there! How can I help you, child?"

Minoko made sure to jump a bit in feigned surprise, turning away from the painting of a volcano that she was inspecting near the entrance. She clumsily removed her shoes and slipped her feet into the too-large slippers. A large smile spread across her face as she stumbled over to the counter, "Hi! I'm Kimi! Miyu-obaa-san told me to come here and ask for someone named Takuto."

A brief flash of confusion crossed the man's face, "Miyu did? Watanabe Miyu?" At her enthusiastic nod, he tilted his head in mild suspicion, "I'm Watanabe Takuto. You got any proof she sent you, kid?"

Minoko's eyes widened as if she just remembered something of great importance. She hurriedly whipped her pack off her back and knelt down on the floor as she frantically dug through it, "Oh yeah! She told me to give you something. Hold on a sec please."

An amused smile settled on the older man's face as she triumphantly held a letter in the air with a whoop. He took it from her and scanned the contents before nodding, "Well, I'll be. I haven't heard from the old bat in years! It looks like Miyu's taken a liking to you squirt. She's calling in an old favor so you can stay here for a while."

Minoko puffed her cheeks out and crossed her arms, "I'm not a squirt! My name's Kimi. Ki-mi!"

A chuckle escaped him as he ruffled her hair. He ignored her grumbling about too many people messing up her hair and turned to look through a log book, "Well, squirt, it looks like I have a free room on the second floor. Room 207. That sound ok with you?"

After a glare that was more adorable than it was threatening, Minoko nodded her head, "How much?" she asked as she pulled out her change purse.

Takuto shook his head, "Nah, Miyu called in a favor, remember. It's on the house for as long as you need it."

Her eyes widened in genuine surprise, "Really?" she breathed out in disbelief.

His amused smile turned soft, "Yes, really. On two conditions though," he stated in a firm tone.

When he saw he had her full attention, he held up a finger, "First, you will always be home before it gets dark out. That usually happens at around 8 this time of year." She nodded. That sounded fair and doable. It would look suspicious for a five year old to wander around past that time anyways.

Takuto held up a second finger and a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth as he tried to stay serious, "And second, you will eat with me and my daughter every night. She's pretty busy during the day, so we eat just after 8 when she usually gets home from her duties." Minoko forced tears to her eyes as she ran around the counter to hug the man, "Thank you Takuto-oji-san!"

Another chuckle rumbled in his chest, "No problem, squirt."

She leaned back to glare at him again, "That's going to be a thing now, isn't it?"

The amused twinkle in his emerald green eyes was answer enough for her.

A few minutes later, she was opening the door to her room. It was a bit larger than the one she had back in Suna. When she walked in, she noticed that it had the same warm tones as the lobby did. The queen sized bed was situated along the right wall. It had burgundy sheets and brick orange colored pillows. The walls were a deep chocolate brown and the throw rug on the ground contained a mixture of the three colors. The thick curtains on the window on the wall opposite the door were striped with the orange and dark red as well. On the left wall was a dark wooden dresser, a floor length mirror, and another door that she assumed led to a bathroom. Overall, Minoko was pretty happy. And she didn't have to pay for it!

After inspecting her new room and getting situated, Minoko placed the seals that were given to her before she left Suna in hidden, hard to reach areas around her room. The seals would prevent people from sensing her chakra fluctuate, which would allow her to summon Shinji for her weekly reports without anyone being suspicious.

Maybe this whole mission wouldn't be a complete disaster. Sure she missed home and her daddy, but she could handle that. She was a bit worried about Gaara though. People in Suna weren't exactly nice to him, but she had to remind herself that he was tough.

_He'll be fine._

**...**

Gaara panted heavily, his eyes wide in surprise and a bit of fear. His hand was outstretched as he stared in muted horror at the man he had pinned to the wall with his sand.

He had just wanted to buy a gift for Minoko...how did this happen?

A shooting pain blazed through his skull as Mother tried to take over; to squeeze every last drop of blood from the fool that thought it wise to attack them and paint the sands red. Gaara's other hand came up to press against his forehead to try and find some relief from the pain. He pushed Mother back, refusing to become the monster that the villagers claimed him as.

A muffled cry emerged from the cocooned assassin, redirecting the young boy's attention to the matter at hand.

What was he supposed to do?

The man had tried to kill him. He said that it was an order. He was from Suna. He wasn't supposed to hurt people from Suna. _He tried to kill him. It was an order._

Panic filled him, causing his thoughts to become frantic and his breathing erratic. There was only one person that could order this. What did he do to make his father want him dead?

Tears welled up in sadness and anger. He hadn't done a thing! Why was this happening!? Why him!?

His hand started to close slowly against his will. A shriek of pain was heard clearly through the grains of shifting sand.

_Yes_, he heard Mother whisper in glee, _Make him scream! Make him suffer for attacking us! Show the world what happens if they cross us! This is your purpose. This is why you were born. Kill him. Kill him!_

Gaara cried out in anguish, his eyes shutting tightly in an effort to fight back. His arm that was held up was shaking with effort.

A flash of gentle crimson eyes and warm hugs appeared in his mind's eye.

The shaking abruptly stopped, the voice of Mother was muffled to a bearable level, and Gaara took a shuddering breath. He loosened his hold on the man that had passed out from pain and let him fall to the ground. He had several broken bones, but he would live.

Gaara turned and quickly shuffled away. He wouldn't be the monster the villagers thought he was. He was her friend. She wouldn't want him to hurt people.

_Please. Please come back soon, Minoko._

**...**

She had taken a shower and changed before going back downstairs just before eight. Takuto and his daughter lived in a house attached to the side of the inn. The entrance was on the other side of the office that was though the door behind the counter. Takuto told her to just come on over when dinner time came around, so she went ahead and walked over. The smell of dinner hit her the moment she went through the door and her mouth started to water.

"Takuto-oji-san! I'm here!" she exclaimed enthusiastically as she entered the kitchen.

Takuto glanced over his shoulder from his place by the stove and smiled at her, "Right on time chibi-chan. I was just about to call for you."

Minoko's smile fell from her face as she let her head hang in defeat, "Squirt, chibi…I'm starting to see a pattern here."

With a resigned sigh, she moved to help him set the table, her overly exuberant personality coming back in full force. She chatted nonsensically about day-to-day life. How she came to Mizu by boat and the nice man that talked funny, her encounter with Miyu-obaa-san and the guards, about what her 'mama' was like before she 'died.' Takuto nodded indulgently as she prattled on, encouraging her to keep talking. Internally, Minoko wondered if she would have a voice left by the end of the night.

Just as they were sitting down, Minoko heard the front door open and a voice calling out 'Tadaima!' Minoko looked over her shoulder to stare at the entrance of the kitchen.

"Okairi firecracker," Takuto shouted back, "We have a guest."

Minoko thought she heard a muffled groan come from the direction of the beautifully feminine voice, "Tou-san, what have I said about your ridiculous nicknames. I'm a grown woman. You really need to-"

The voice cut itself off as a woman came into the dining area and spotted large crimson eyes staring at her from a tiny pixie face, "Well, hello there, dear," the woman smiled, "Who might you be?"

"Kimi," Minoko whispered in stunned awe, "You're really pretty."

The musical tinkling of the woman's laughter matched the grace that she exuded. Minoko hadn't been kidding. She was probably the prettiest woman she had ever seen! Her eyes were emerald green like her dad's, but unlike his light brown hair, hers was a striking shade of red that flowed down to her waist. Her dress was blue, which somehow contrasted nicely with her fiery hair and enhanced the natural paleness of her skin. Minoko's eyes were drawn to the metal plate that was attached to a sash around her waist like a belt. She was a kunoichi.

"Nice to meet you Kimi," she said with a smile tugging at her artfully painted lips, "My name is Terumi Mei."

**A/N: Dun dun duuun! Did anyone see that coming? :D **

**Please leave a review! They have been sorely lacking as of late v.v On chapter 17 with only 7 reviews T.T**

**See you next week!**

**Tadaima: I'm home**

**Okairi: Welcome home**


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Thank you for the review **_**Carvaine**_**! It's much appreciated!**

**Chapter 18**

"Mei-nee-chan!" Kimi exclaimed as she barreled into the laughing woman that just walked into the house. It had been almost a month since the young child had come to stay with them. Mei was quite fond of the boisterous girl and tried to make a point of spending time with her when she was home. The girl was starting to feel like family. Like her younger sister or a daughter.

_No, she's definitely more like a sister_. Mei thought as she listened to the child jabber on about her day, _Even though I'm 21, I am much too young to have a child._

Mei stubbornly refused to acknowledge the thought that if she had a husband, having a child like Kimi wouldn't be a bad thing.

"And then I went to the docks near the _biiiiig_ lake! And there was a guy there that I tried to talk to, but he wasn't very nice. He told me to go away cause I was annoying, so I called him a meanie and left. He wouldn't even answer _one_ question! So then I went to a _different_ lake and found an old guy. He was nicer, but he didn't know papa either, so that didn't really help. Then I ran into Yanagi-san and Suji-san again. Yanagi-san tried to give me a squirrel, even though I don't know _where_ he got one since they aren't native to Mizu no Kuni, but Suji-san got mad and beat him over the head, so the squirrel got away before I could take it. I don't really get it, but they're pretty funny. Then I-"

Mei nodded along as she scooped the child up and settled her on her hip as she made her way into the house. She almost always heard Kimi talk about those two buffoons. They were quite taken with the adorable chibi and used any opportunity they could to tease her or spoil her when they weren't on gate duty. It was kinda cute. If they were a few years older, she might have considered dating one of them. Alas, sixteen was much too young.

Mei internally sighed in frustration at her thoughts and walked into the dining area. Her father was already there with the food laid out on the table. She didn't know what she would have done without him.

When she was a young girl, she discovered that she held not one, but _two_ kekkei genkai from her mother's side of the family. The family didn't help her any since they had disowned her mother for marrying someone they didn't approve of. Apparently, her mom was something of a rebel and didn't like the idea of an arranged marriage. So, she found a random civilian, got pregnant, and ended up falling in love along the way. A bit unorthodox, but Mei wasn't complaining.

Unfortunately, her mom died back when she was not much older than Kimi. Her dad stepped up and became both a father and a mother to her. He learned how to cook and clean. He made sure that she could focus on her shinobi studies after she told him that she wanted to be a kunoichi and promised that he would take care of everything else. He even allowed her to take her mother's maiden name so that she would gain more respect from her peers. Takuto had worked two jobs for several years before he opened the inn he always wanted when she was a genin. He even named it after her lava and boil release to show how proud he was of her. He followed through more than she had thought possible. Sure he had horrible nicknames for anyone he met and found entertainment through annoying others, but she wouldn't change him for the world.

Mei bent down to give him a small kiss on the cheek before plopping Kimi into her own chair, the child still talking a million miles a minute. As she looked at her little family, Mei smiled.

**…**

_A young looking boy was watching her from across the street. His__ silvery hair and __pink eyes were beautiful and he had a kind smile. Maybe she should talk to him next._

_From what she knew, there was some kind of silent war going on. She was having a hard time keeping her cover enough while simultaneously trying to gather information. No one wanted to talk to a kid about this stuff. But he seemed to be a teenager, so maybe she could find something out from him._

_ She skipped over to him and called out. He turned to her with a raised brow, his shinobi companion looking at her with suspicion. She asked her question. The boy crouched down to her level and patted her on the head. She felt warm inside. He was so nice!_

_ In an instant, his smile became sinister and his face went blank. The gentle hand on her head went to her neck and turned painful. She couldn't breathe!_

_ Before her world went dark, she heard him order his companion to head her interrogation. The man called the boy Mizukage-sama._

Minoko sucked in a breath as her eyes went wide in panic. Well, she was _definitely_ going to avoid pretty teenagers when she went out for information in the morning...and for the rest of her time in Kiri.

Minoko was currently in her room at the inn. She had just finished having dinner with Watanabe Takuto and his daughter. They really were kind people. She felt bad for tricking them, but it was her job.

She had just sent the Kazekage her weekly update. She found out that several families with kekkei genkai would randomly go missing. Some defected, some eventually turned up dead, and others were simply never seen or heard from again. The people here called it a silent war. The unrest was palatable, but the Mizukage hadn't made it official yet. From what she'd heard, though, it was only a matter of time. And no one seemed to know why it was happening in the first place.

Apparently, the Mizukage had been a kind person when he was first inaugurated. One day, with no warning, he just snapped. It had started with the cruel graduation exams about fifteen years ago where friends and comrades fought to the death in order to become a shinobi. At one point, a child that wasn't even in the academy managed to wipe out an entire graduating class. Somehow, that didn't stop the practice. It only made the teachers more brutal in their lessons so that it wouldn't happen again.

Not long after this, information about Kiri started leaking to rival villages. The Mizukage become paranoid and started suspecting kekkei genkai holders to be the ones behind it so that they could gain power in the village. The destruction of the Yuki clan was the first in a long line of horrors.

Mei-nee-chan was lucky that she hadn't been targeted yet, but from the whispered conversations that she overheard between her and her father, she was starting to feel the pressure. She talked about a rebellion that was forming in the ranks of the shinobi of Kiri. Her father just looked worried and said that she reminded him of her mother before pulling her into a hug. Minoko had left right after, not wanting to intrude more or get caught.

Minoko had heard a little about the Mizukage, but she never knew what he looked like. She knew his name was Yagura and that he was a Jinchuuriki like Gaara, but she never heard a physical description.

The dream bubble that she had the moment Shinji poofed out of existence provided that. He looked so young! She never would have thought that he was in his thirties! She would have thought that he was fourteen at most! At least now she knew that and could avoid him like the plague while also adding a detailed physical description to her next report.

Minoko had been having a lot more dream bubbles since she had arrived in Kirigakure. She would wander around Kiri during the day under the guise of looking for her papa. Most citizens scoffed or would tell her that he was probably dead if he hadn't come home yet. She heard bits and pieces about a war on those with bloodlines when people weren't paying attention to her. Minoko had to keep her emotions firmly in check and act like she didn't hear a thing while inwardly shuddering at the possibility of her being discovered. Not only was she a spy, but she also had a kekkei genkai.

Before approaching some people, she would have a dream bubble. Sometimes it would show her a person finding her suspicious and taking her to the Mizukage, who would be shrouded in shadows. Other times it would give her the information she needed, thus negating the real reason for the interaction. Minoko learned her lesson about ignoring her dream bubbles, so she would turn and walk down an ally to continue her search on a different street or she would talk to them about a completely unrelated and childish topic.

So far, this method worked for her. She just hoped that the Kazekage would recall her soon. She missed home.

Kiri was nice and all, but it was too wet. The air here had more moisture in it than most oases in Suna! There was so much blue, too. She missed the tans and dryness of the desert.

Her daddy was probably lonely. Since her mommy moved out, she was all he had left. When he knew she would be gone for an extended mission, he would often stay in his workshop for days on end. She sometimes came home and had to go retrieve him from the Puppetry Division where he was sleeping on a cot near his desk or working himself into an exhausted state of oblivion. Hopefully he was taking care of himself this time.

She also really missed Gaara.

She desperately wanted to send him a letter, but she knew that it would be a bad idea. That didn't stop her from thinking about red hair and seafoam eyes and a shy smile that warmed her heart. She clutched her pillow closer to her as she tried to hold back her tears. She would see him again soon. She wondered if he missed her as much as she missed him.

_I hope he's ok._

**…**

Gaara was sitting in a corner in his room, rocking back and forth in an effort to calm himself. Cinnamon was clenched tightly in his grasp as he tried desperately to ease the pain in his skull.

Mother was shrieking at him. Demanding that he give her blood.

Sand started whipping around the room like a miniaturized sand storm as the shrill voice in his mind increased in volume.

He dropped the bear onto the floor and grabbed his head with both hands as his eyes squeezed shut. The headaches were getting worse. It was an almost constant ache now instead of an occasional occurrence.

It started becoming more consistent after the third assassin.

It had been about a month and a half since Minoko left Suna. In that time, Father had sent at least five people to kill him. He wasn't entirely sure of the number since there were a few additional attempts on his life from foreign shinobi and missing nins. For all he knew, Father could have hired them, too.

Yashamaru-oji-san was never around when the attacks happened. He was getting busier since he was accepted into Anbu, so he couldn't spend as much time with him as he used to.

This meant, however, that Gaara had to deal with his would-be killers on his own. He tried...he tried_ so hard _to not hurt them too much. But it was getting more and more difficult to not give in to Mother's demands. He wanted to do so much more than just leave them unconscious with a few broken bones.

He wanted them to feel his fear for themselves.

When Yashamaru-oji-san was around, he felt a bit calmer, but what he really needed was the soothing presence of Minoko.

She accepted him for who he was without avoiding him or looking at him with eyes filled with hatred. He cared about her more than any other person in the village because he could just be himself around her. Even Yashamaru-oji-san had moments when he would approach him with caution. Gaara never had to see that from his best friend.

If something didn't change soon, he was worried that that would change. That he would start to see that look on her face; like he was a monster.

And she might be right. He wasn't sure how much longer he could last without some form of relief.

He missed her.

He wanted her to come back.

He wanted to feel _safe_ again.

**A/N: Tried out different perspectives this chapter. Let me know what you think!**

**Unfortunately, I'm going to have to take an extra week for the next chapter, so I'll see you all again in two weeks! I'm sorry v.v**


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Shout out to ****Carvaiine (who's name I accidentally spelled wrong last time...sorry about that ':D)****, ****pigs103, and BabiBunchez! Thank you for your reviews! You made my day :)**

**On to the next chapter!**

**Chapter 19**

**One month later**

Minoko jerked awake and frantically searched in the dark for her clock. It was just past 3am. Why in the world was she awake?

A distant crash of glass answered her silent inquiry. She threw back her covers and hurried out the door, being as silent as humanly possible as she made her way down the stairs into the lobby.

There was no one there and the lights were all dimmed for the night. The raven-haired girl tip toed across the floor to the office behind the front counter. She listened at the door. Hearing shuffling, she gulped and eased the door open.

_It's probably just Mei-nee-chan,_ Minoko thought. She had been on a mission for the last three days and was supposed to be home sometime tonight. _She probably just dropped a glass or something..._

The office was pitch black except for the flickering of candle light beneath the door on the far side of the room. The door that led to Takuto-oji-san and Mei-nee-chan's house.

Minoko slowly stepped into the office and drifted lightly across to the door. Her heart was hammering in her chest and her breathing quickened.

Takuto-oji-san and Mei-nee-chan never lit candles. They would just turn on a light if they were up.

Pressing her ear to the smooth wood, she heard muffled voices. They were angry. A sudden scream made her jerk back, eyes wide and trained on the door in horror. That was Takuto-oji-san.

More muffled voices, another pained scream. Minoko was frozen. She tried to will her hand to reach up. To grab the door handle and open the door and rescue her oji-san. He was just a civilian. He was so nice and made stupid jokes that always made her smile even when she tried not to. He treated her like family. He _became_ family. She could _save_ him.

But then her cover would be blown.

She felt ice start to form in her veins at the thought. A cold, creeping feeling that slowly engulfed her whole being. Her cover-

Another scream. She felt a tear roll down her cheek at the agony in his voice. Her hand wouldn't move. It just hung uselessly in the air between her and the handle.

"Where is Terumi, Takuto? She was supposed to be home by now. She has committed treason against the Mizukage by joining the rebellion. Tell us where she is and we'll be merciful."

Minoko pulled her hand back and held it to her mouth to stop any noise from escaping. The voice on the other side of the door had risen enough for her to hear him. She could hear a muffled response coming from Takuto, though the words were lost to her.

She couldn't understand what he was saying, but she could tell he was having trouble breathing.

"He won't say anything, taicho," came a second voice in cool monotone, "What are your orders?"

There was a pause and Minoko held her breath. Her heart was beating so loudly that she could barely hear when the captain said, "Kill him. We'll find her eventually."

Minoko's heart stopped, _Move! Help him! Just move already!_

She didn't move.

A thud of something hitting the ground rang in her ears.

When she was sure that the two shinobi were gone, she shakily raised her hand to the door handle again. This time, her body obeyed her command and turned it. There was a soft squeak as the door opened. Minoko took a shaky breath and robotically took a step forward, afraid of what she would see.

Glassy emerald eyes that were normally filled with mischief and warmth stared back at her blankly. They were vacant, almost accusing. Her feet moved her forward and she could see the ropes binding his wrists and the cuts littered along his body. They had left him unceremoniously on the floor, the candle still flickering and casting ominous shadows across his form. His head was tilted at an awkward angle.

Minoko didn't notice when warm blood seeped into the cloth of her nightgown as she knelt by his side. She didn't notice the tears streaming down her face or the broken sobs that escaped her lips. She just focused on placing her fingers on his neck and hoping, _maybe_…_maybe…_

A wail of grief escaped her when his pulse didn't beat against her fingers. She collapsed on top of Takuto, heart-wrenching cries sounding in the air as she clutched at his tattered shirt.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry! Oji-san!" She repeated like a mantra. Like if she said it enough times, he would come back and forgive her. Forgive her for doing nothing when he needed her. Forgive her for lying to him since the first moment she met him.

Forgive her for putting her cover for this _stupid_ mission over his _life_.

Minoko didn't know how long she held onto the cooling body of one of the nicest people that she'd ever met, but when she felt gentle, yet firm hands pry her from him, she finally took stock of her surroundings.

Warm, watery emerald stared back at her. A melodic, yet pained, voice shushed her. Warm hands rubbed circles into her back.

Minoko felt tears running down her face anew, "Mei-nee-chan," she croaked out, her voice rough from crying. Minoko's hands moved to clench desperately at Mei's dress, unaware of the red staining her hands and the fabric, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I was…I was in the office. I…I could have….could have _done_ something! I'm sorry! I should have opened the door. Why didn't I open the door!? I could have saved him!"

"Shhh, shhh, shhh. It'll…it'll be ok, Kimi. Shhh," Mei continued to rub calming circles into Minoko's back. The young girl absently noted that the top of her head was getting wet. Mei was crying too.

"I'm sorry. I didn't help him. I…I heard him scream, nee-chan. I didn't help him!"

Mei took a shuttering breath, "It's not your fault chibi-chan," she said using one of her father's endearments for the young child, "There was nothing you could have done. It's my fault. They were after me."

Minoko felt another stab to her heart. Mei didn't know. She didn't realize that she _could_ have helped him. She was a kunoichi. A genin yes, but a kunoichi nonetheless. She ignored the voice in the back of her head that told her that even if she _had_ broken her cover, she would have probably died too. The people that were sent after Mei-nee-chan were most likely jonin.

Minoko buried her face in the crook of Mei's neck, her tears continuing as sobs shook her body.

With that, Mei stood up, carrying Minoko. She whimpered at being moved from her spot by Takuto-ojii-san, but allowed her nee-chan to carry her. They went upstairs where Mei turned on the shower.

Minoko was in a daze as she was carefully stripped and washed off the blood that coated her. At one point, Mei left the room after wrapping a large, fluffy towel around her and telling her to wait there.

Minoko is vaguely aware of when Mei's chakra spiked randomly from downstairs, but she didn't feel any kind of killing intent or threat, so she stayed where she was.

When Mei came back several minutes later, she smelled like ash and something unidentifiable that was burnt.

Mei dressed her in a dark blue dress that looked like a smaller version of the one the woman always wore. They went back downstairs and Minoko came out of her daze when she noticed that Takuto-oji-san was gone.

Only a charred pile of ash was left on the floor.

Minoko grimaced and went pale when she realized what happened; why Mei's chakra spiked and she smelt like something was burning.

Mei turned Minoko's face away from the pile to look at her, "Kimi, darling, I have to leave Kiri. Those men that hurt Tou-san…they'll come back for me."

Minoko nodded. That made sense.

"Sweety…I'm sorry, but I…I can't take you with me," Mei looked pained by the admission, guilt welled in her eyes, "It wouldn't be safe for you. Is there anywhere you can go? Anywhere outside of Kiri?"

Minoko hesitated. The Kazekage had sent her a missive two days ago through her summons stating that she was to return. She was going to tell them once Mei-nee-chan returned from her mission.

This wasn't how she wanted to leave, but…

"My uncle lives in Kaze no Kuni. I was…I was going to go there after you got back. Papa…no one knows papa here. Mama might have lied to me about him…or papa might have lied to her…or something," she said in a pained whisper.

This wasn't how she wanted to leave, but it was convenient.

Kami, she hated how callous that sounded.

Mei nodded, "Two days, Kimi-chan. You need to leave in two days. I have to go tonight, but if you leave too soon, it'll look suspicious and you might be stopped. Can you do that?" Mei framed the raven-haired girl's face with her hands. Minoko raised her smaller ones to cover hers and nodded, one last tear escaping.

Mei pulled the girl into a hug that was almost too tight, yet at the same time not tight enough, and held her for several moments, "I love you like the sister I never had, Kimi. Take care of yourself."

Mei released the hug and smiled once before she simply vanished, leaving behind young girl, a pile of ash, and a house full of love and memories.

Minoko sniffled, rubbed the tears from her face, and straightened up. She couldn't cry any more. She had to get ready to leave and finish her mission. As she stood from the chair, she felt something move and looked down. Hanging from her neck was a locket in the shape of a red wave.

**…**

Gaara smelled the blood. It's almost intoxicating.

They should have heeded his warning. He had been _so_ nice before. He hadn't killed anyone that tried to kill him in the last two months…

Until that moment.

The mangled corpse at his feet was unrecognizable. Bone was visible as it jutted out from the skin. Muscle was laid bare from where the sand had shredded the layers of skin and tissue. Organs were nothing more than paste strewn about the ground while blood pooled and flowed like rivers beneath what was once a man.

Mother was pleased.

She was finally quiet in his mind. Was this all he had to do to stop Mother from talking? It was so simple. Why hadn't he done this before?

Red eyes and gentle hugs flashed across his mind once more.

That's right. She would be sad. She would have wanted him to stop.

He glanced at the corpse again with an indifferent gaze. _Well, if she wanted me to stop, then she should have been here._

Gaara turned and walked home, ignoring the spots of red that dripped down his face and the disturbing smile that spread across his lips.

**A/N: This…was not what I originally planned. I wasn't anticipating for this chapter to be so…bloody…Ah well. Let me know what you think!**

**Taicho: Captain**


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**A big shout-out to Carvaiine for the constructive criticism! I hope that I can incorporate your advice in future chapters. **

**And another shout-out to YaoiLovinKitsune! I appreciate reading how you view this story and your predictions :)**

**Now on to the next chapter! Warning: filler/crack chapter XD**

**Chapter 20**

Yanagi stretched lazily, his arms bending back behind his head as he arched his back. A satisfying pop had him letting out a sigh of contentment that turned into a lazy yawn. Guard duty was boring. Relaxing, but boring.

He eyed his childhood friend out of the corner of his eye. Suji looked as if he was going to fall asleep at any moment. A sharp-toothed grin spread across Yanagi's features, his fatigue all but forgotten. _Perfect._

Suji was usually all business. He yelled, poked, jabbed, and smacked Yanagi around like some kind of abusive, disciplinary dictator. _"Pay attention, Yanagi." "You should always be alert, Yanagi." "You should take your duty seriously, Yanagi."_

The nagging jerk.

The indigo-eyed shinobi mentally cackled. He'd been waiting for a moment like this. He would soon have his revenge!

Suji's head nodded, his chin starting to rest on his chest, his arms crossed. Just a bit more, and Yanagi could move toward his goal. He'd been biding his time for weeks now, he could wait patiently for a few more minutes.

When a light snore emanated from his long-time companion, a low, dark chuckle escaped Yanagi as he slowly rose from his chair and went over to his pack. After rustling through it for a moment, he pulled out a storage scroll and held it up in silent triumph. After weeks of training, of waiting, it was time to see the fruits of his labor!

Turning sly eyes to the sleeping redhead, the wiry shinobi slinked over, opened the scroll, and started to gather the barest drop of chakra to activate the seal-

When he was suddenly ambushed from behind by a pipsqueak.

"Yanagi-nii-san! Good morning! What're you doing? What's that scroll? Why were you laughing like a crazy person? I know what a crazy person sounds like. Back in my old village there was a crazy guy that would always walk around with a chicken. He would put it on his head like a hat and sing strange songs. I don't know _how_ he got the chicken to stay there. Do you have a chicken?"

Yanagi groaned in despair. It was a combination of the slight bump on his forehead, the chatterbox that was Kimi-chan, and the lost opportunity for retribution.

On top of it all, Kimi was currently sitting on him while his face was planted on the ground. It couldn't get any worse than this.

"Well, well, well. Look who let a five year old sneak up on him," came Suji's amused baritone, "What have I told you about being aware of your surroundings?"

Damn.

"Shut up, Suji! You were asleep! Talk about being unaware of your surroundings," the prone shinobi snarled. The effect of the threatening gesture was greatly reduced by the innocent looking child in pigtails still panted firmly between his shoulder blades.

"Get off me Kimi!"

"But nii-san! You're comfy!"

"Off! Or no sweets for you," when the little urchin just giggled and patted him on the head patronizingly, Yanagi glanced at her over his shoulder, eyes gleaming with mischief. Sure, he could just shrug the kid off, but where would the fun be in that? "That's it, I guess I'll have to tickle you into submission."

Kimi let out a gasp of horror and quickly scrambled off to hide behind a chuckling Suji.

"Meanie!"

With a huff, Yanagi stood up and brushed off the dirt. He turned his eyes to his new foe.

Kimi let out a squeak and grabbed Suji around the legs, hiding her face in the back of his knees.

Unhindered by the clinging girl, Suji bent at the waist and scooped something up that made Yanagi pale and start to slowly back away.

"And what's this, Hozuki? A storage scroll?" came the cloyingly sweet tone that meant sure death on the battlefield. Suji straightened and gently tossed the scroll in the air before catching it again, "Now why would you be holding _this_ over my head?" he asked in feigned ignorance.

Yanagi held his hands up in a placating gesture and chuckled nervously, "N-now Suji, you wouldn't want to do something rash, now w-would you? T-think of Kimi! She would be traumatized!"

Suji glanced down to the child and noticed a gleam in her eyes that matched the deviousness of most shinobi, "What do you think kid? Would you be 'traumatized?'"

A tinkling, bell-like giggle escaped rosy lips. A shiver ran up Yanagi's spine. How in the world did an innocent civilian kid's laugh sound so sinister? That shouldn't be possible!

"Don't worry about me, Suji-nii-san!" Kimi said, matching the sugared tone of the muscled man next to her, "Yanagi-nii-san was going to tickle me. He deserves whatever you do to him."

Before Yanagi could accuse the runt of being a traitor to her poor nii-san, a poof was heard, followed by a chittering sound.

Oh. Oh, no.

_"EEP!" _

Hozuki Yanagi would _never_ admit that his shriek of terror had sounded more girly than Kimi's. It was a manly yell.

A_ well-deserved_ manly yell.

Suji and Kimi both watched with unrestrained glee as Yanagi ran screaming from the large hoard of squirrels.

"So," Suji said as he glanced at the 'innocent' gremlin at his side, "Why did you attack the idiot?"

"What do you mean nii-san? I was just glomping him with love! Not attacking him!" Large doe eyes stared at him, practically glittering with child-like purity.

Suji snorted, "Nice try kid."

Kimi's guileless features melted into a smirk and she shrugged, her eyes turning back to the supposed chunin...who was now covered in squirrels. Where those tiny swords in their paws?

"Weeeeeeeeell," Kimi said, rocking back on her heals, "He was going to open that thing on you, but you were awake and just pretending, so I didn't want him to get hurt when you attacked him back."

"_YOW!_" came a pained scream. Huh….apparently those were tiny swords. Go figure.

Suji raised a brow, "Didn't want him to get hurt, huh?"

Kimi shrugged unrepentantly, "He was going to tickle me," she said, as if that was explanation enough. And it kinda was. She did _not_ like to be tickled.

"Not bad, kid. Not bad."

The smile that crossed her face seemed to glow with happiness. Suji reached down to ruffle her hair. As she swatted at him, he smiled. She was a good kid.

"I swear if you don't help me, you big buffoon, I'm going to tell Akari-oba-san!"

Suji sighed in annoyance and moved to dislodge the samurai squirrels, "You'll tell my mom what? That your own trap was used against you? And how the hell did you train these things to use a sword!?"

Kimi watched the bickering struggle between two of her favorite people left in Kiri with a sad smile. She'd miss these two when she left. Just one more day, then she could go home and grieve properly. Until then, it was nice to distract herself with her two loveable baka-nii-sans.

**A/N: As I said, a bit of a filler/crack chapter, but I needed something to lighten this story up :D Please review!**


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**This chapter is long overdue. I'm so sorry about the late update, but work got in the way of writing this month T.T**

**Thank you for the review _Carvaiine_ and_ BatmanForPresident_! I'm glad that I could make you laugh :D**

**On to the chapter!**

**Chapter 21**

Minoko took one last glance around the room that she had come to see as her own. She had taken the seals off the wall and burned them to remove the evidence, threw away whatever garbage had accumulated over the last two months, and packed up all of her clothes and supplies.

She was currently wearing the outfit that she had arrived to Kiri in. The black overalls with flowers and ladybugs stitched onto the pockets with her red shirt. The red and black ribbons fell in gentle waves from her pigtails. The outfit Mei-nee-chan gave her was tucked safely in the bottom of her pack in a waterproof bag to keep out the bugs and dirt and wet.

Spotting a splash of color on the dark wooden dresser, she walked over and saw the locket that was left around her neck two nights ago. The red of the wave against the dark tungsten metal stood out beautifully. The detail in the cresting water was immaculate.

She still didn't have the courage to open it and see what was inside.

She picked it up with shaking hands, her fingers fiddling with the clasp of the locket for a moment. Her breath caught in her throat before she let out a shuttering sigh.

_Later._ _I can't-_

Minoko closed her eyes to regain control of her emotions. Deep breath in…deep breath out…In…out…

She opened her eyes a moment later and unclasped the chain of the necklace instead of the locket itself and clipped it around her neck, letting the charm hang against her collarbone. The weight of the cool metal was comforting in a way.

Minoko sighed once more as she looked around. With a final nod, she turned, shouldered her pack, and walked out the door.

It was time to go home.

**…**

Minoko walked to the front gate in a daze. She took in the sights of Kiri one last time, somehow knowing that she would never come back. Two months ago, she would have been fine with that. The air was too humid, the colors too blue, the people too dodgy…

But now, Kiri held a type of beauty that she never appreciated before. Yes, the air was humid, but that meant that her skin didn't feel dry and chapped after a long day outdoors. Yes, it was too blue, but it held a vibrancy that the neutral colors of Suna couldn't compete with. The people were dodgy, but there were those that made living here worthwhile. That made you smile and feel warm inside just from knowing them.

She would miss that.

She would miss Mei-nee-chan with her graceful beauty and kind smiles and warm hugs. The faint scent of sulfur that seemed to hang off of her that should have been unsettling, but simply felt like home and love.

She would miss Takuto-oji-san. The open expressions on his face and teasing inflection in his voice. The kami-awful nicknames that he came up with and ridiculous jokes that were _so_ horrid that you just had to laugh anyway. The acceptance in his mannerisms that told her without words that she was welcome in his home, at his table, in his family. She would miss seeing the life that shone from his emerald eyes as they crinkled into a good-natured smile.

Her heart panged in grief while she did her best to keep her features smooth and pleasant.

Approaching the gate, she spotted two more people that she wished she didn't have to say goodbye to. Yanagi and Suji were goofy and amusing and their banter was priceless in the way only longtime friends could achieve. They went out of their way to make her smile since their first meeting and endeared themselves to her in a way she never expected during an infiltration mission.

She found friends here. She found family.

And now, she was going to have to disappear.

They would never see Tanaka Kimi again, because once she crossed back into Kaze no Kuni, Kimi would die.

And Minoko would be all that was left.

The young kunoichi that purposefully deceived kind people and took advantage of their misconceptions of her. That manipulated situations and conversations in order to gain information that could potentially change the course of their political climate if used correctly. The girl that did nothing to protect someone innocent and allowed them to die because she put a mission before a life.

She didn't deserve them.

So, she would smile for them one more time and act as though nothing was wrong. She owed them that much at least.

**…**

Suji rolled his shoulders in an effort to loosen the muscles there that had tightened over the last several hours of immobility. He honestly hated gate guard duty. He would do it without complaining, but he still wished that he could go out on missions again soon. The only reason he was stuck there was because of the twig-like imbecile next to him.

Yanagi had had the bright idea of trying to steal (or, as Yanagi claimed, 'borrow') one of the seven swords of the mist. And of course, Suji just happened to have been dragged into the whole debacle despite his protests. He _still_ didn't know why he eventually caved into Yanagi's begging. He blamed it on a mixture of momentary insanity combined with the use of surprisingly effective puppy dog eyes. Seriously…how could a male teenager with limbs the size of his thumb pull those off _that _effortlessly? It shouldn't be possible!

Suji remembered how about four months ago they snuck through the Hozuki compound, which only consisted of about two dozen houses, and broke into a home on the edge of the property. The two boys had only just entered through the window when they were instantaneously pinned to the wall with senbon and had a blade poised at their necks. Sure, Hiramekarei belonged to Yanagi's cousin, but that didn't stop Mangetsu from punishing them. If they had been almost anyone else, they would have been dead instead.

Now they only had about more six more months of guard duty to make up for the catastrophic error in judgement.

Suji roughly ran a hand down his face in frustration. Why did he put up with this shit?

He glanced over to his partner and watched as the smaller chunin attempting to balance senbon needles in complicated shapes on top of the table. His tongue was poking through a gap between razor teeth to stick out of his mouth in concentration.

Suji bumped the table, making the tower of needles fall with a clang and a purple glare that promised murder soon landed on him. He smirked.

He and Yanagi had been friends even before they started the Academy. They grew up together since their parents were good friends, something that was hard to come by in this village.

Suji was always large for his age while Yanagi had been too small. Suji had originally thought that the smaller boy wouldn't live long enough in this cut-throat village, but Yanagi had surprised him with his speed and agility. Yes, Suji could flatten him like a pancake, but that would require catching the guy first. Something that had been growing steadily more difficult to do as they got older.

The two of them had acquired several bullies in the Academy, but they had each other, so they were able to ignore them and rank highly in each class. They both had breathed a sigh of relief when they weren't chosen to face each other in the graduation exam. Suji didn't know if they would have been able to kill each other.

They got on each other's nerves more often than not, but that's what brothers did. It didn't mean that they wanted to hurt each other. At least, not to that extent.

With that last thought going through his head, Suji ducked as Yanagi went flying over his head in an attempt at retaliation for the collapsed needle tower.

"Oi, Hozuki, were you trying to aim for something? Or were you just practicing your acrobatics?" Suji said gruffly with a smirk still plastered on his face.

Yanagi growled deep in his throat and crouched to launch another attack… when he was once again tackled by a flying pipsqueak.

"Yanagi-nii-san! Are you playing leap frog? You went flying over Suji-nii-san, so you have to wait 'til he goes over your head next! You need to take turns! It's only fair, ne?"

Suji had to stifle a chuckle at the crestfallen resignation on his long-time friend's face.

"Hello Kimi-chan," Suji greeted, "What're you up to today?"

The chatterbox went silent and slowly slid off of Yanagi's back, which caused both chunin's eyes to sharpen on her.

"Kimi-chan?" Yanagi prodded "What's wrong?"

Suji winced slightly. That was probably the wrong question to ask. He had heard about Mei and Takuto's disappearance. It was a fairly open secret the Takuto was dead and Mei was considered a traitor. Kimi probably didn't know anything about that, but she would have noticed their absence the last couple days.

Kimi scuffed her toes in the dirt as she looked down, her lower lip trembling slightly, "I…I'm going away," came her barely audible answer.

Now _that_ wasn't what he expected. Suji looked over her shoulder and noticed the full pack sitting a few feet away that she must have quickly discarded when she jumped on Yanagi.

"Why're you leaving?" he asked, not wanting to draw any conclusions without more information.

Kimi kept her eyes down and sniffled lightly, "Papa…papa isn't here. He mighta lied to mama…or mama mighta lied to me…but no one knows papa," she shrugged her shoulders a bit forlornly "And I told my oji-san that I'd go live with him if I couldn't find papa. I don't wanna leave, but I promised."

Yanagi stood and patted her on the head, "You sure you can't stay? I've finally gotten used to randomly falling on my face."

Kimi giggled a bit and looked up at the Hozuki with a small smile, "No, I promised. Mama told me to always keep my promises or no one would trust me ever!" she stated with all the conviction of a five year old.

Suji couldn't help the small smile that escaped at that. "Did you say all your goodbyes then?"

Kimi's eyebrows scrunched a bit, "Kinda. I'm saying bye to you two now, but I couldn't find Takuto-oji-san or Mei-nee-chan for a couple days. I tried to find them, but no one knows where they are," confusion was evident in her features as her eyes unconsciously scanned the streets for them, "I wanted to say goodbye, but I need to get to Kaze no Kuni by the end of next month. I'm not very fast, so I need to leave today."

"I'm sure that they'll understand," Suji said.

The young girl looked up at him with large crimson eyes, "Can you tell them if you see them? I don't want them to think I left without looking for them."

"We'll tell them kid," Yanagi said reassuringly, "Promise!"

Kimi smiled widely and nodded. She turned around and hopped over to her backpack. After putting it on, she turned and rushed back over, colliding with his knees in a hug. "Bye-bye nii-san."

Suji pushed her back a bit and crouched down to give her a proper hug, "See ya, kid. Take care."

She squeezed him once before repeating the process with Yanagi.

"Bye Kimi-chan. Don't forget us and make sure to watch out for killer squirrels."

A wet laugh escaped from Kimi as she leaned back to look at him, "Especially ones that can use swords, right?"

"Right!" he said with a serious nod.

Kimi stepped back and looked at them in silence for a moment.

"I'm going to miss you guys."

"Yeah, yeah," Suji said as he shifted slightly, starting to get uncomfortable with the mushy exchange, "You better get going."

Kimi nodded and waved before turning and walking out of the gates.

After a few minutes, her silhouette disappeared into the mist and the two chunin returned to their posts.

"I'm going to miss her," Yanagi sighed.

"Uhuh."

"She was pretty entertaining, don't you think?"

"Yep."

"Almost like a real sister, huh?"

"Yeah."

"You're a real conversationalist, aren't you?"

"…Sure."

Yanagi smacked his forehead as Suji's eyes danced with hidden mirth. Instead of a loud or violent retaliation though, Yanagi became uncommonly serious.

"You didn't tell her about Takuto and Mei."

"…Why put that on a kid when we don't need to?"

"We made her a promise," said Yanagi casually after a moment.

Suji's eyes cut over to him quickly, quietly assessing the silver-haired man, "Indeed we did…"

Yanagi leaned back in his chair to balance on the back two legs and stared contemplatively at the sky, "You know," he said quietly, "my clan has a kekkei genkai."

Suji froze a bit and glanced about. No one was within listening distance, "Ah."

"And we did promise to tell Mei that Kimi said goodbye," Yanagi continued nonchalantly.

"We did… It would be a shame to break a promise to a five year old," he replied.

Yanagi's eyes glanced at him from the corner of his eye, "Tonight?"

Suji forced a calm countenance, "Tonight."

There was no way he'd let his friend become a rebel by himself. He'd get killed within the first week.

He'd have to keep an eye on him.

**…**

When Minoko first left Suna, it had been early July. It was now early October as she finally made her way through the familiar dunes of Kaze no Kuni.

The journey back had thankfully been uneventful. She bypassed Watanabe Miyu's village, not wanting to have to put on a happy mask while pretending she didn't see the old woman's cousin get murdered. Instead, she camped out in a small grove of trees off the path before going to the docks.

There, she had been lucky and found the same captain from her previous trip. She didn't need the waterworks to get aboard this time and she made sure that she kept to herself for the most part…Except for when she needed to throw up…

Yeah, she still hated boats. They were _evil_.

Hi no Kuni was still humid, but not nearly as much as it had been in Kiri. She almost didn't notice it this time around.

Yeah, it was an _extremely_ uneventful journey.

And now, she was almost home. As bittersweet as she felt about leaving Kiri, she was _going home._ After being away for about three months, she felt relieved to see the never-ending expanses of sand and feel the heat of the sun on her skin.

She took a deep breath of overheated air and smiled her first truly genuine smile in months. Home meant daddy. Home meant Gaara. She couldn't wait to see them again! Just one more day, and she'd walk through the gates. Just one more day!

**…**

Three months without his baby girl was more painful than he would ever admit. Kai Taru was a fairly independent person. Or, at least he was before he got married and had a child with the woman he adored.

He never imagined that Mizuno would be the type of person to leave at the drop of a hat. Sure, she wanted her daughter to have a peaceful life. He did too. But to walk out on their family just because Minoko chose a different path in life…he didn't know what to think about that, even after all this time.

It just wasn't like her.

They were childhood sweethearts, meeting at age nine, dating by age thirteen, and married by eighteen... On second thought, maybe he hadn't been all that independent.

But that didn't matter. Because the two of them had weathered through so many tough times together. The loss of their families over the course of a single year because of a combination of sickness and bandits. The miscarriage of three children before they were blessed with Minoko after five years of trying to have a kid. Being forced from their home in the middle of the night.

But they had been happy.

Mizuno had always been so vocal about the importance of family. They both knew loss. They both knew grief. They both agreed that even if the world was against them, they would make it through as long as they had each other. They had been in each other's life for almost twenty years...and now she was gone.

It didn't make _sense_.

He had looked for Mizuno whenever Minoko had gone out on missions. After the letter telling him where to bring her things, he hadn't seen or heard from her. He had even gone to that apartment where he had brought her things after Minoko had been admitted to the hospital. He told Minoko that Mizuno didn't want to come, but the truth was that the landlord said that she had only been there for a week before some genin were sent to move everything once more. He didn't want his little girl to worry. Better to have a clean break than to be left wondering…like he was now.

He had no leads on his wife.

"_Well, ex-wife"_ he supposed. He cringed at the thought.

He still loved her. Kami, did he still love her. He'd give almost anything to hold Mizuno again. Anything but his relationship with his little miracle child.

The child who had been gone for_ three months_.

Taru let out a weary sigh as he rested his head against his workbench.

Minoko used to come and get him after he worked himself into oblivion. When she was busy or exhausted from training, Gaara would do so in her place. But Taru hadn't seen the sweet red-head in about a month. He had heard stories though. Bloody, crazed stories that stopped him from seeking the boy out.

He missed seeing the shy smile the child would make and the gentle reprimand Gaara would give him for working so much. Taru shouldn't look forward to a five year old treating him like a child, but it was endearing.

What was happening to the people around him?

He missed seeing his daughter's little friend. He missed seeing his wife when he came home from a long day.

Most of all, though, he missed Minoko. Her coal black hair and sparkling ruby eyes and a smile that lit up the room. The late night discussions the two of them would share over hot chocolate and tea that were far too mature, but were entirely normal from his little girl.

Taru smiled gently at the thought. Hopefully she would come home soon. He missed her so much.

**…**

Gaara sat on the roof of his house and stared up at the moon. The ethereal glow was oddly soothing to his normally chaotic thoughts.

The last few weeks had been relatively peaceful for him. Only two more assassins had tried to kill him. They died instead.

Mother was quite pleased with that.

There hadn't been another attempt in a while. Surprisingly, he was able to push Mother's voice back now that the danger had receded. He was still on edge, but he no longer had to listen to the screaming and demands for blood every minute of every day. He'd enjoy it while he could.

Yashamaru-oji-san was around less frequently. He was probably scared. Everyone was scared of him. His uncle, his father, his siblings, even random strangers on the street that he'd never met.

Why couldn't just _one _person accept him? Just one. That's all he needed. He wasn't greedy.

A sudden pain tore through his mind as a blurred image of a girl his age came into focus. Red eyes a shade darker than his hair. Black hair pulled into a neat bun. A kind smile. A person that gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek without hesitation.

_Who was she?_

He felt a vague familiarity dancing at the edge of his thoughts, just out of reach. He knew her somehow.

_Where was she?_

He hadn't seen her recently, he knew that much. But he felt like she was important.

But if she was that important, if she was that special...why wasn't she there? With him?

If she was scared of him too, then he didn't need her. A slow, resigned smile spread across across his features.

_She will prove my existence._

**A/N: And there's chapter 21! Probably not as long as you'd hoped considering my lack of updates…I'm sorry! I hope you like it though. Review and let me know :D**


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Shout out to BatmanForPresident! I really appreciate the review :D**

**Chapter 22**

Minoko's eyes watered at the sight of the massive tan walls that surrounded her village. Finally. Finally she was home.

She blinked back the tears and walked the last few steps to the entrance, giving a beaming grin to the guards that looked at her incredulously, "Kai Minoko, genin, reporting back from a solo C-rank mission."

"..."

"..."

"…What?"

Minoko giggled internally at the dumbstruck look on both the guards' faces. Seeing people's reactions to her age and rank never got old.

She handed over her mission scroll to one of the guards and rattled off her identification number. The man jumped a bit and closed his mouth. He went over to the log book and flipped several pages before glancing up at her with something like disbelieving respect in his eyes, "ID number confirmed and return recorded. You are to report immediately to the Kazekage. Welcome home."

Minoko nodded and felt another grin stretch over her features. Sure, she'd have to see the Kazekage (something that she honestly dreaded) but after that, she could find her daddy and give him a big hug and then find Gaara and do the same. And it was going to be a big, big hug. A glomp, if you will.

_They'll have no idea what hit them, _she thought with a giggle.

**…**

Taru was focused entirely on the wooden limb in front of him. The puppetry division was thrilled with his recent productivity. He was producing the various parts of a puppet's body at a pace previously unheard of for a person, let alone a civilian.

But what else would he do with his time? He couldn't find Mizuno. He had looked everywhere. A couple weeks ago, he finally caved and ended up going to the civilian registry to ask about his wife's whereabouts. Since they were still technically married, he had a legal right to the information.

It turned out that she was no longer in Suna at all. She had up and left without a word to anyone.

She was gone and she never even said goodbye.

And so, he threw himself into his work with a drive that many would consider unhealthy. He would often skip meals or only have a small snack while he whittled away at the wood in his workspace. He would sleep for an hour or two at a time, then go right back to his task. The shadows under his eyes grew more pronounced each day, but the quality of his work never diminished. That was all that his employers cared about. If the quality was up to standard, then it didn't matter if he worked himself into oblivion.

That's the way he liked it.

Taru took a drink of the water he kept at his desk and wiped the sweat from his brow. It was just past noon on the 89th day without his daughter. Nearly three whole months. He hoped that she was ok. That she was eating well and getting some rest in a real bed. That she wasn't being attacked in a foreign land and that she was safe wherever she was.

He wanted to see her.

Taru sighed and ran a hand roughly down his face before setting the water down and picking up the limb to start again.

He heard the door to his workplace open with a light squeak, but didn't bother to turn around, "Saito-san, I told you that you didn't need to keep bringing me food. I'll be fine-"

"Daddy," came a whisper-soft voice. Taru dropped the limb on his desk and whirled around to face the door, eyes wide and all tiredness washed away in an instant, "Minoko?"

There she was, covered in sand and sweat and slightly red from the sun. But she was smiling and whole and _home_.

"Minoko?" he said again in quiet disbelief as he rose from the chair. He wasn't dreaming this time right?

"Hi daddy. I'm back," she said with a small smile as she took a step forward.

Taru didn't know which one of them moved first, or if it happened at the same time, but the next moment he was kneeling on the ground hugging his baby girl. He absently noted the stray tear that escaped his eye, but ignored it in favor of relishing the moment. She was giggling and her tiny arms were wrapped tightly around his neck as she nuzzled her face into his shoulder like she had done practically since she was born.

After a few minutes of relieved laughter and a reluctance to let go, Taru pulled back and cupped her face with both hands, "Welcome home, sweetheart."

The smile she gave in reply eased something in his chest and for the first time in a long time, he could breathe easily.

**…**

Minoko had had a very productive day. After she had entered Suna, she reported to the Kazekage. It was fairly monotonous. Just a summary of her findings and a review on her written reports. How clear her descriptions of various events and people were, how she could improve in the future, and how to not get attached to people the next time around.

Yeah, that last one had made her heart nearly jump out of her chest. She never mentioned Takuto, Mei, Suji, or Yanagi in her reports aside from her initial meeting with them to give an assessment of their threat level and abilities. How the Kazekage knew she had grown attached, she'd never know.

He had told her to rest up for the next two weeks before reporting in for an evaluation to determine her promotion and subsequent missions.

She had left as quickly as she could while still being respectful and immediately went home. When she couldn't find her daddy there, she went straight to his workshop without bothering to shower or change.

Hugging him had been wonderful. She was initially going to tackle hug him in surprise, but she hadn't realized how much she missed him until she was able to hear his voice. After that, she had gotten a bit choked up.

She was five. She was allowed.

Daddy had taken the rest of the day off, which, surprisingly, his boss didn't comment on. The two of them had gotten cleaned up back home and then went out for some lunch. The familiar spice palate in the Suna dishes was absolutely fantastic.

They spent the rest of the day catching up and just spending time in each other's presence. Minoko couldn't talk about the details of her mission, so they stuck to safer topics like the differences between the food, weather, and scenery in Kiri verses Suna.

Before Minoko knew it, night had fallen. Her daddy told her that she should go to bed since they both had a long day…or rather, a long several months. She hesitated. She had almost gotten used to setting her own schedule that it threw her off a bit. That, and she still had someone else to find before she went to bed. But she reluctantly agreed to his insistence in the end.

Daddy went to bed as well and she could hear him snoring from the other room within minutes. He must have been really tired.

Minoko threw off the covers and got changed quickly. She sent a silent apology to her daddy for her disobedience, but hopefully she'd be back in bed before he woke up and he'd never have to know.

Sneaking out of the house was easier than she remembered it to be. Her steps were light and she was able to avoid any areas that would have squeaked under her weight. The door opened without a sound and she was off into the night.

Three months may not seem like a long time to most people, but to someone that was five, it felt like forever! As smart as she was, she still forgot several small details. Which place was his favorite restaurant again? Was that the park they played in before, or was it the one on the other side of the market? Was his favorite color red or green? Little things that slowly built up over time. It was quite annoying.

But she would never forget her best friend.

His shy smile and quiet nature and ridiculous love of cactuses.

She subconsciously knew where to go as she dashed through the nearly empty streets and whizzed around corners. Almost there!

Minoko skidded to a stop in front of a playground that she knew so well. The one that they would always meet up at before they had become shinobi.

And a familiar shock of red hair caught her eye under the moonlight.

A beaming smile split her face as she saw her bestest friend in the whole world lazily push himself back and forth on the swing set.

A grin, the biggest one that she had had that day, burst from her as she shouted in excitement, "Gaara!"

**…**

His head snapped up as soon as he heard her voice. It was familiar.

_Why was it familiar?_

A girl his age was running down the slope in his direction with a large smile plastered on her face.

_Why was she running _towards_ him? Why was she _smiling?

She reached the bottom of the small hill and was jogging over to him. He remained seated on the swing, a perplexed look on his face. When he didn't react, she slowed down and a look of concern flashed in her eyes.

_Was she concerned for him? Or for her own safety?_

She still approached, but at a slower pace, now only a couple meters away, "Gaara? Are you ok?" she asked in a calm tone.

_Why was she_ so familiar_?_

Pain laced through his skull so suddenly, so unexpectedly, that he cried out. His hands automatically grasped at his head as Mother shrieked in anger, trying in vain to ease the tormenting agony that pierced his mind.

"Gaara! What's wrong? Are you hurt? Should I get Yashamaru-sensei?"

He heard her, somehow, over the indignant squawking of the demon in his head. His sand lashed out at her.

_Why was Mother so mad at her? Why did he feel dread for this unknown, yet known, girl when his sand shot toward her?_

She jumped back away from the dangerous grains but then continued to advance.

_Why didn't she run _away_?_

Scratches appeared on her cheek, on her arms, on her legs. Tiny, insignificant marks that slowly built on one another. Drops of red dripped down in thin rivulets. But she steadfastly ignored it. Her eyes held nothing but worry and determination as she reached out for him.

There was no fear.

Gaara's eyes widened in disbelief as he felt warm arms around his neck. His sand froze midair and Mother's voice faded into nothing as her warm breath fanned out over his neck and she squeezed him in a comforting embrace.

"You're my best friend, I love you bunches and bunches, and we'll be together forever," she whispered, her arms tightening slightly.

All at once, Gaara felt something in him shift. Not Mother. Something…softer?

Memories.

Dark hair and red eyes and kind smiles. Acceptance. No fear.

His friend.

Gaara's arms rose and hesitantly settled around her waist with natural, practiced ease. A sob escaped him as his mind cleared for the first time in who-knows-how-long.

"Minoko?"

**A/N: Reunions galore! ****Let me know what you think!**


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

**Another thank you to BatmanForPresident! I love getting an alert for a new review and constructive criticism is welcome :D**

**Chapter 23**

"Minoko?"

Gaara's voice was more fragile than she had ever heard it before. Even moreso than when he first told her about the demon sealed in him. He sounded so lost and confused and he was shaking in her arms.

Minoko nuzzled her nose into the side of his neck as her arms tightened once more around his form, "I'm here, Gaara. It's ok."

She could feel his body shudder with suppressed sobs. She didn't know what to do for him, so she just stayed still and quiet.

After a few minutes, Gaara pulled back. His head was lowered so that his hair covered his eyes from view. Minoko took a small step back, releasing him but staying within arm's reach. Both kids were quiet for a long time before Gaara finally looked at her.

She watched as his eyes widened in horror. He looked down at his hands and then back to her. That was when she noticed the red staining his hands and glanced down.

_Huh, when did that happen?_ Minoko thought as she examined the thin cuts that littered her body. They were all shallow. They didn't hurt so much as sting lightly. She was about to just shrug it off when she heard a whimper come from her friend. She looked up to see him back away from her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I…I didn't mean…" Gaara turned as if to run away from her and Minoko quickly reached out to grab his arm.

"Hey, I'm ok. Where're you going?"

"I didn't…your arms…face…so much blood…monster…I really am a…"

"Hey!" Minoko pulled him around to face her. His eyes were staring right through her, blanker than she had ever seen from him. His eyes…they looked almost dead.

"You're not a monster," she stated firmly, "You've never been a monster. You didn't mean to hurt me and I'm ok. They don't even hurt. They just feel like really tiny paper cuts."

"But-"

"No buts!" she stubbornly stated, "You're not a monster. I'll never see you as a monster. You're my friend. This was just an accident, right? If you were a monster, you wouldn't feel guilty, right? And I know you'd never hurt me on purpose!"

Gaara looked her in the eye hesitantly, then let his gaze wander to the blood that was still sluggishly dripping down her cheek, "I…" his eyes squeezed shut.

A sudden swirl of sand surrounded Gaara and she felt his arm wrenched from her grasp. When the sand dissipated, he was gone.

**…**

Gaara's mind was in utter chaos as he ran. He couldn't look at her now. He _couldn't._

She said that she didn't see him as a monster. That it was an accident and he didn't…_wouldn't_…hurt her.

But she didn't know.

She didn't know that he had killed people when she was gone. So many people. And he had enjoyed it.

The images of blood pooling around cooling corpses, entrails scattered and bones ground to dust as though they had made contact with high grade sandpaper flashed in his mind's eye. The haunting laughter - _laughter_\- that he had emitted during those occasions echoed in his thoughts.

Gaara jumped through his open window and collapsed in a heap inside his bedroom. He curled in on himself and clenched his knees, biting his fist to keep the noise down.

He had forgotten her, too. He didn't know why either. Not really.

It made no_ sense_! She was his closest friend. They had been together for over a year and spent almost every day of that time together. They had gone to the greenhouse, had 'sleepovers', gotten food and played games and hugged and laughed and he…just forgot? Just like that?

Looking back, he could vaguely remember stopping himself from killing the first few times after she…left? Why did she leave? Oh, mission, right. Ok, so she left on a mission to…somewhere. She was gone for a long time…

Gaara forced his breathing to slow into a slow, steady rhythm as he tried to focus. His memories..of her...of the last few months...they were fuzzy. Blurred. He didn't have this problem before. He _knew_ that he didn't. So why…?

_Maybe it was Mother? _a small voice that sounded like his own said in the back of his mind. The thought froze his tears and had him scrunching his brows together.

_But why would Mother want me to forget Minoko?_

She was the one person that truly cared about him in the whole village. Even more than Yashamaru-oji-san. She made him happy. She kept him _sane_.

_If I didn't forget her, I never would have done those things!_

Gaara internally froze and his breath hitched.

Of course.

Mother wanted blood. Gaara refused to give it blood because he didn't want Minoko to look at him with those eyes.

A sudden rush of memory flooded his mind as things cleared up. The fuzz was pulled back to allow his memories and logic and emotions through.

Mother was known to eat away at its host's psyche. It ate away his memory of his friend so that he would do whatever it asked.

He almost forgot her because of the demon.

He almost forgot what it was like for someone to _care_ because of the demon.

Never again.

Gaara wiped the tears from his face absentmindedly as he stood up on surprisingly steady legs and walked over to his desk with a determined air. He pulled out a blank journal and started writing furiously.

He wouldn't forget her again. He'd make sure of it. He'd write down everything about her that he could think of and add to it as much as possible. He'd tape a picture of her in it later.

He'd write until his hands cramped up and then…and then he would find her and apologize and welcome her home properly.

And he would tell her the truth...and hope that she could still look at him with those kind eyes.

Resolve hardened his features. He wouldn't forget again. He wouldn't.

No matter what she thought of him after tonight.

**…**

Rasa gazed out of his office window at his village below. His even gaze was calculating and cold. He needed to be cold in order to do what was best for his village. This place, these people, they were his responsibility.

The child that his late wife birthed was defective, as proven by his turbulent emotional state. A defective weapon was more dangerous than having no weapon at all. Hence why he needed to be rid of it.

He would do it himself, but it was the one promise that he made to Kurura. He would never lay a hand on the children with the intent to injure. Even the child that was to be nothing more than a tool to be pointed at Suna's enemies. She may have been a means to an end, but he did care for her to an extent. He'd keep his promise, but still protect his people.

_He_ would not lay a hand on the children. But he could have others do it for him.

The previous assassins were disposable. Most were from outside of the village and held no viable connection to him or Suna. They were merely pawns to gauge the strength and defenses of the jinchuuriki.

Rasa knew that in order to be rid of the monster, he would need someone that was trusted. Someone that could get inside his defenses unnoticed.

He had the perfect candidate for the assassination in mind. Ever since Yashamaru came to him over a year ago with information about the 'friend' of the weapon, he had kept tabs on her. He had Yashamaru begin to mold her into the perfect tool.

The first obstacle was simple. She needed to begin training in the shinobi arts. An attack made by a hidden Yashamaru after dark was the instigator. Having him come out of hiding to comfort the…children…and then offer to train them in self-defense was almost seamless.

The next problem that showed up was the girl's mother. That woman wanted to coddle the child. That wouldn't do. A slight genjutsu after the girl's promotion to genin ensured that the woman would cut all ties to the family and wouldn't interfere with the girl's training. He had a trusted subordinate keep her in the jutsu or sedated for almost a full week. She was moved to an apartment on the other side of the village. Her husband was made to bring her belongings to the new residence. Once that was finished, the woman was killed and some genin were hired to clear the room of her personal affects. No one the wiser to what had occurred.

The girl was now well trained. She could be categorized as a prodigy. After the completion of her infiltration mission, which she provided more information than even he had hoped for, Rasa was now free to promote the genin to chunin.

He would give her the week to settle back into a routine before the promotion. Then he would give her a few months to worm her way back into the life of the jinchuuriki.

After that, he would give her the mission that she was cultivated for.

**A/N: I hope that this chapter answered some of your questions! I had several people message me either about her mom or why Gaara would forget Minoko. Let me know what you think!**

**On a separate note, I'm not sure how regularly I can update the story. Work has been a bit chaotic since the virus started. I'm still going to update as frequently as I can, but it may not be every week v.v I'm sorry!**


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